CHINESE and U.S. experts held a dialogue in order to calm down the escalating South China Sea dispute, in Washington D.C. on Tuesday.
Dozens of experts from over 20 Chinese and U.S. think tanks and research institutions participated in the event.
Former Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo and former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John D. Negroponte delivered keynote speeches at the event. They mentioned that China and U.S. has no territory disputes and the fundamental strategic conflicts surrounding the South China Sea and the relationship of the two countries shouldn’t be defined by this issue.
Dai talked about the past relationship between China and the U.S. and also clearly stated China’s views about the South China Sea issue during his speech. He said China will always insist on negotiations to solve the South China Sea dispute and called for the dispute to calm down.
“Whoever will let the situation worsen and ultimately end in disaster, must take on the historical consequences. All the related countries need to make concrete efforts to calm down about the South China Sea dispute,” said Dai.
Dai refuted the arbitration over South China Sea unilaterally initiated by the Philippines. He said the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in The Hague has no right of jurisdiction and that China refused to participate in the proceedings and will never recognize the final verdict, stressing that the tribunal has no jurisdiction because the case is in essence related to territorial sovereignty and maritime delimitation.
Negroponte said the South China Sea shouldn’t become a confrontational field between the two nations. The Chinese and U.S. experts conducted in-depth discussions about their perspectives, the divergence and future resolutions from the South China Sea dispute.
“Dai proposed some constructive ideas on how to avoid potential problems from the South China Sea dispute between China and the U.S. I think the keynote speech delivered by former State Councilor Dai Bingguo has some good points,” said Wu Shicun, president of National Institute for South China Sea Studies.
“Well, I think it’s great that both sides emphasize that although the South China Sea is a contentious issue, that the greater relations are really the more important thing and that those are fairly stable, and both sides realize that we need to find ways to address and manage the problems of the South China Sea. But that we shouldn’t let them negatively impact the great relations. So I think it’s very important from both Mr. Dai and, both sides. I think that’s good,” said Brendan S. Mulvaney, an expert with United States Naval Academy. (Courtesy China Central Television/Reuters)
