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Activities of the related Parties

China

China refuted Philippine protest against its weapons deployment

Regarding the information that the Philippines submitted diplomatic note to China for its deployment of air defense and missile defense weapons in the South China Sea, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying on January 17 said: “China has the right to deploy necessary and proper national defense facilities on its own territory. China is committed to peacefully resolving relevant disputes in the South China Sea through negotiation and consultation with sovereign countries directly concerned including the Philippines. The South China Sea issue is cooling down and returning to the right track thanks to joint efforts by China and relevant parties including the Philippines.” Regarding a recent meeting between Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin and Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, Hua said: “The two sides had candid and in-depth exchanges and forged broad consensus on the South China Sea issue. We have come to an agreement that the South China Sea is only a tiny part compared to the overwhelmingly friendly relations between China and the Philippines that keep growing, and should be peacefully resolved through dialogue and consultation.”

The Philippines

Philippines defence minister says China arms on islands worrying

According to a statement by Philippines' defence minister Delfin Lorenzana on January 17, "the actions of China in militarising those disputed features are very troubling." "They do not square with the Chinese government's rhetoric that its purpose is peaceful and friendly." Lorenzana took a stronger line than Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay, who refrained on Tuesday from criticising China, but said the issue had to be handled carefully and the public should know "we are not sleeping on the job".

Regional Snapshots

Abe says Japan will provide Vietnam patrol vessels

At a news conference in Hanoi with his Vietnamese counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said: "The two countries will further strengthen security and defense cooperation and this time Japan has decided to provide (Vietnam with) newly built patrol vessels at Vietnam's request." Vietnam already has six used patrol vessels provided by Japan and how many were in the fresh offer wasn't mentioned. On his part, Phuc said "the two sides agreed on the importance of ensuring peace, security and safety of maritime navigation and overflight in the East Sea, promoting the settlement of disputes by peaceful means, no use of force or threat to use force."

Indian PM urges Chinese restraint as Trump handover nears

Addressing an audience of politicians and top military brass from 65 nations at a security conference in New Delhi, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said: "Rising ambition and rivalries are generally visible stress points. The steady increase in military power, resources and wealth in the Asia-Pacific has raised the stakes of security. Although couched in diplomatic language and not mentioning China by name, Modi's remarks in a keynote foreign policy speech aligned New Delhi with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump's intent to curb Beijing's regional clout. That reflects not only India's concerns about the South China Sea, but fears that Beijing is threading a "string of pearls" in the Indian Ocean theatre by building strategic ports in countries like Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Djibouti on the eastern coast of Africa.

Xi calls for joint efforts in building long-term, stable China-U.S. relations

Chinese President Xi Jinping on January 17 called for joint efforts by China and the United States in building a long-term, stable and cooperative relationship to meet the interests of both countries and the world. Xi made the remarks when meeting U.S. Vice President Joe Biden in Davos, Switzerland. Bilateral ties have experienced ups and downs but generally kept moving forward since the two countries established diplomatic relations 38 years ago, said Xi. The United States hopes that the two nations could continue to deepen mutual trust and expand cooperation, said Biden.