G7 puts pressure on China over maritime forays, after Japan uses its clout

The Group of Seven major nations has adopted a document focusing on maritime security for the first time, giving member Japan new backing in its bid to step up pressure on China over territorial issues.

G7 foreign ministers, endorsing the "Declaration on Maritime Security" after meeting in the German city of Lubeck, said they opposed any attempt to press maritime or territorial claims "through the use of intimidation, coercion or force" in the context of Chinese activities taking place mainly in the South China Sea.

In talks that ended on Wednesday, they discussed maritime security as the main focus of their annual gathering for the first time since the forum was formed in the late 1970s. The G7 comprises Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the US.

The reference to territorial disputes in the South and East China seas forms a part of the six-page document, which also addresses a number of other subjects including piracy off Somalia, human trafficking and how better to share information.

A senior Japanese foreign ministry official said Japan, as the only member from Asia, worked hard to persuade the G7 to compile a document centring on maritime security.

Tokyo directed its efforts at drawing renewed attention to the South and East China seas, where Chinese assertiveness over disputed islands had generated tension, the official suggested.