China wants bilateral resolution of dispute

Days before US President Barack Obama arrives in Manila, a senior Chinese diplomat said disputes in the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) should be resolved between nations and be done in the spirit of “peace and cooperation.” Liu Zhenmin, China’s senior official for China-ASEAN affairs and vice minister of foreign affairs, said the bilateral resolution of disputes should be done without the involvement of “external” parties. Locked in disputes with Japan and the Philippines – two countries that are in Obama’s itinerary – China prefers settlement on a country-to-country basis, Liu said. This was in apparent reference to the Philippines which has brought its case to an international arbitral court.

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