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Yang Jiechi News

07 Aug 2020

Pentagon Chief Concerned About Beijing's Activity in South China Sea

Secretary of Defense Mark T. Esper (DoD photo by Marvin Lynchard)

U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper expressed concerns about Beijing’s “destabilizing” activity near Taiwan and the South China Sea in a call with Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe, the Pentagon said on Thursday, the first time the two are believed to have spoken since March.The call came as U.S.-China ties have rapidly deteriorated this year over a range of issues, including Beijing’s handling of the coronavirus, telecommunications equipment maker Huawei, China’s territorial…

25 Jul 2016

ASEAN Breaks South China Sea Deadlock

Manila drops request to refer to court ruling in statement. Southeast Asian nations overcame days of deadlock on Monday when the Philippines dropped a request for their joint statement to mention a landmark legal ruling on the South China Sea, officials said, after objections from Cambodia. China publicly thanked Cambodia for supporting its stance on maritime disputes, a position which threw the regional block's weekend meeting in the Laos capital of Vientiane into disarray. Competing claims with China in the vital shipping lane are among the most contentious issues for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, with its 10 members pulled between their desire to assert their sovereignty while finding common ground and fostering ties with Beijing.

07 Jun 2016

China Tells US to Play Constructive South China Sea Role

China told the United States on Tuesday that it should play a constructive role in safeguarding peace in the disputed South China Sea, as U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry called for talks and a peaceful resolution. China claims most of the South China Sea, through which $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes every year. The Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei have overlapping claims, as well as close military ties with the United States. China has been angered by what it views as provocative U.S. military patrols close to islands China controls in the South China Sea. The United States says the patrols are to protect freedom of navigation. Speaking at the end of high-level Sino-U.S.

25 Jun 2015

Obama Raises Maritime Concerns with China

US President Barack Obama urged Beijing to take "concrete steps" to ease tensions over maritime claims, as America and China wrapped up three days of candid talks, reports AP. "The president raised ongoing U.S. concerns about China's maritime behavior, and he urged China to take concrete steps to lower tensions," the White House said in a statement. The high-level talks in Washington were a prelude to Chinese President Xi Jinping's upcoming visit to the U.S. this fall, and ended with both sides saying they are stepping up cooperation on preserving the ocean and combating illegal fishing. Kerry said they would expand cooperation among coast guard and law enforcement authorities to uphold international standards. He did not provide details.

29 Mar 2015

China Unveils Action Plan on Maritime Silk Road

China has unveiled the principles, framework, and cooperation priorities and mechanisms in its Maritime Silk Road initiative in a bid to enhance regional connectivity and embrace a brighter future together. The plan consists two segments - One is centered on the Asian land mass and called the Silk Road Economic Belt; the other looks to the South China Sea, the South Pacific and Indian Ocean and is known as the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road. Together, they go by “one belt, one road” to Chinese officials. China will encourage local companies to issue bonds overseas to fund projects to create the 'one belt, one road', a plan to boost connectivity across Asia for which it has created a $40 billion fund, according to a framework agreement.

27 Oct 2014

China, Vietnam Want Amicable Sea Dispute Solution

China and Vietnam agreed on Monday to use an existing border dispute mechanism to find a solution to a territorial dispute in the South China Sea, saying they did not want it to affect relations. The two countries have sought to patch up ties since their long-running row erupted in May, triggered by China's deployment a drilling rig in waters claimed by the communist neighbours, which lead to confrontation at sea between rival vessels and violent anti-Chinese protests in Vietnam. After a meeting between China's top diplomat, State Councillor Yang Jiechi, and Vietnam Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh in Hanoi, China's foreign ministry said they had agreed to "appropriately handle the maritime problem".

23 Oct 2014

Sea Dispute Sparks China Diplomat to Vietnam Visit

Secretary Kerry Shows Chinese State Councilor Yang Overview of Boston Hometown. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]

China's top diplomat will visit Vietnam next week, China said on Friday, five months after he last visited during a period of tension over a Chinese oil drilling rig working in part of the South China Sea both countries claim. State Councillor Yang Jiechi, who outranks the foreign minister, will arrive in Vietnam on Monday for meetings with Vietnam Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh, China's foreign ministry said in a statement. The two would discuss "Sino-Vietnam bilateral cooperation", the ministry said. It did not elaborate.

10 Jul 2014

Shanghai, L.A. Ports Launch 'Ecopartnership'

The Beijing Signing Ceremont (Credit: Port of LA)

The Port of Los Angeles and the Port of Shanghai signed a formal agreement to exchange information, technical expertise and practices to expand the use of shore power at the Port of Shanghai. The signing ceremony concluded the sixth meeting of the U.S.-China Strategic and Economic Dialogue. The meeting was co-directed by: U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew, China’s Vice Premier Wang Yang, and State Councilor Yang Jiechi. The annual conference brought the two nations together to address mutual challenges and opportunities on a wide range of bilateral…

21 Jun 2014

China Urges Peaceful Development of Seas

China, involved in a growing dispute with its neighbours over the energy-rich South China Sea, wants to promote peaceful development of the oceans, Premier Li Keqiang said, warning conflicts in the past had only brought "disaster for humanity". China claims almost the entire ocean, rejecting rival claims to parts of it from Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei in one of Asia's most intractable disputes and a possible flashpoint. It also has a long-running dispute with Japan in the East China Sea. "China will unswervingly follow the path of peaceful development and firmly oppose any act of hegemony in maritime affairs," Li said at a maritime summit in Greece on Friday in comments carried by China's Foreign Ministry website on Saturday.

18 Jun 2014

China Scolds Vietnam over China Sea Rig Row

China's top diplomat scolded Vietnamese officials during talks in Hanoi on Wednesday for "hyping up" a row over a Chinese oil rig drilling in disputed waters in the South China Sea, in tough comments that suggest relations will remain rocky. State Councilor Yang Jiechi also told his hosts that the rig's activities in waters also claimed by Vietnam were "completely legal", China's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a daily briefing in Beijing. Yang, who outranks the country's foreign minister, made the remarks in a meeting with Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh. Before the visit, experts had said many obstacles remained to resolving one of the worst breakdowns in Sino-Vietnamese relations since the neighbours fought a brief war in 1979.