US 'unqualified' to refer to UN sea law convention: FM

The US keeps referring to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) but was “unqualified” to talk about it, China said on Monday.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Zhao Lijian made the remarks at a press briefing in Beijing on Monday after a US-ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) special summit in Washington DC concluded with a statement reaffirming the need to resolve disputes peacefully via the convention and international law.

The South China Sea was the shared home of regional countries, Zhao said, and “With the concerted efforts of China and ASEAN countries, the situation in the South China Sea is stable on the whole,” he said.

The US kept referring to United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, the ministry spokesperson noted, “but it hasn’t acceded to it, which inevitably makes people doubt the credibility and persuasiveness of US rhetoric about the convention and question whether the US is unqualified to talk about it.”

As a country outside the region, the US should respect the regional countries’ efforts in maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea and“refrain from disrupting the conclusion of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea,” Zhao said.

ASEAN is a political and economic union of 10 member states in Southeast Asia.

“The code of conduct in the South China Sea is a shared aspiration and demand of China and ASEAN countries,” the ministry spokesperson said. “In late May, China and ASEAN countries will hold face-to-face consultations.

“We remain confident in the prospect of reaching the code.”

(Compiled by Meng Gaohan)