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| US Vice President Joe Biden (Image: Wiki Commons) |
China must abide by the same international rules as everyone else, US Vice President Joe Biden warned after a UN-backed tribunal ruled against Beijing's claims in the South China Sea.
The United States has no claims of its own within the vast area, but insists that all shipping has a right to pass through seas it regards as international waters.
It has previously deployed aircraft carriers and a host of other vessels to assert freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, through which a third of the global oil trade passes.
"We expect China to play by the same rules as everyone else," Biden told the Sydney Morning Herald in comments published Saturday, referring to the international rules-based system that governs claims to maritime territory.
He added that "we're urging both China and the Philippines to abide by the ruling".
Beijing asserts sovereignty over almost all of the strategically vital South China Sea, despite rival claims from its Southeast Asian neighbours, most notably Manila, a US ally which took the case to the tribunal.
Read the full story at SpaceDaily