A state-backed think tank has put forward China’s “four core principles” as a constructive framework for addressing disputes in the South China Sea, while blaming regional tensions on external actors who fuel rival claimants’ actions and weaken the “willingness for maritime cooperation”.
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“China has long been committed to managing tensions and differences with disputing parties, and exercising great restraint in disputes”, Xinhua Institute, a think tank affiliated with state news agency Xinhua, said in a research report released on Sunday.
China would uphold its four core principles, “which have withstood the test of time” to transform the disputed waterway into a region of peace and cooperation, it added.
According to the report, these principles are: resolving disputes through consultation on an equal footing, managing differences through rules-based co-management, achieving positive outcomes through mutually beneficial cooperation, and opposing interference from external forces while encouraging them to play a constructive role.
China formally presented its blueprint for cooperation in the South China Sea in 2002 through an agreement with Asean. Beijing’s expansive claims over the busy, resource-rich waters are contested by several member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, including Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines, a US treaty ally.
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Since 2023, face-offs between Chinese and Philippine vessels in disputed waters have become more frequent, particularly near Scarborough Shoal, Second Thomas Shoal and, most recently, the Sandy Cay coral reef.