G7 showdown looms as China pressures Japan to leave South China Sea off the agenda
China is embroiled in overlapping territorial and maritime disputes in the South China Sea with Taiwan and four members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.
China has pressed Japan not to broach Beijing’s disputes with regional neighbours in the South China Sea at the forthcoming Group of Seven (G7) summit in Japan, arguing that touching on the issue would hamper efforts to improve bilateral relations, diplomatic sources said on Saturday.
China pressed the point to Japan at a vice foreign ministerial gathering held in Tokyo in late February, the sources told Kyodo News.
But Japan rebuffed the Chinese demand, saying the international community cannot accept China’s building of artificial islands in the sea and their militarisation, they said.
China is embroiled in overlapping territorial and maritime disputes in the South China Sea, including the Philippines.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is eager to clearly state the importance of the rule of law in the G7 leaders’ declaration after securing unity over the South China Sea issue at the G7 foreign ministers’ meeting taking place in Hiroshima in April.
If Japan raises the issue at the summit, Chinese ire could cast a pall over budding signs of improvement in bilateral ties marred by a territorial spat surrounding islands in the East China Sea.
This year’s summit of the G7 states – Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, host Japan and the US – is due to take place in the central Japan prefecture of Mie on May 26-27.