Asia-Pacific countries need to strengthen cooperation due to the current international financial situation, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Weimin said Friday.
This year is the 40th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between China and Japan. But the Diaoyu Islands issue makes this year different.
The Japanese side has staged a series of acts to "buy" China's Diaoyu Islands, but the country should be wary that its farcical ambitions may seriously damage China-Japan ties.
Foreign powers outside the region also take advantage of the South China Sea issue to create controversy. That damages mutual trust among relevant countries in the region.
As foreign ministers of Southeast Asian countries gather in Phnom Penh, they should be wary of letting the South China Sea issue distract their primary focus of advancing regional cooperation.
How well the United States can succeed in accomplishing its "return to Asia-Pacific region" strategy depends on how well it promotes cooperation in the region instead of creating conflicts.
Analysts said Tokyo's political stance toward China's Diaoyu Islands will cast a shadow over relations between China and Japan.
Japan was urged to abandon its outdated foreign policy of leaning on the West and accept China as a key partner as important as the US.
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China's Defense Ministry on Thursday vowed to safeguard the country's maritime rights.
The Philippines has been seeking an arbitration to resolve standoff with China over Huangyan Island, but a closer look at the proposal easily puts its real motives in question.
Liberation Army Daily warned that any attempt to seize Huangyan Island's sovereignty will not be accepted.
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