Territorial dispute in the South China Sea leads to a joint statement after suspension summit of Southeast Asian countries. Beijing insists sovereign rights over most of the region, which Washington rejects.
The Ministry of Defense of China said on Wednesday (04/11) that "certain countries" from outside Southeast Asia are responsible for the suspension of a joint statement at the end of a regional defense forum in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The diplomatic accusation is probably a reference to the United States, involved in a dispute over the right to their military boats and sail load in the South China Sea strategy.
Both US Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, as China's Defense Minister Chang Wanquan, attended the meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to discuss regional defense issues.
Carter had told Chang at a bilateral meeting on Tuesday that the US ships would continue sailing in the waters that China claims to be its territory and which has been building artificial islands to support their claims.
Beijing insists it has sovereign rights over most of the South China Sea - strategic and rich water resources which handle about a third of the oil traded in the world. Washington rejects China's claim.
The dispute in the South China Sea has become a regular sticking point in statements issued after the Asean summits. Military tensions threatened to intensify last week, when the US sent a warship to nearby islands artificially built in the region. Beijing considered the move a "threat to Chinese sovereignty."
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