China has asserted its “indisputable sovereignty” over parts of the South China Sea after the Trump administration vowed to prevent China from taking territory in the region.
The Chinese foreign ministry said Beijing would “remain firm to defend its rights in the region”.
White House spokesman Sean Spicer said on Monday the US would “make sure we protect our interests there”.
Barack Obama’s administration refused to take sides in the dispute.
It did, however, send B-52 bombers and a naval destroyer last year, and the then US Secretary of State John Kerry spoke out over what he called “an increase of militarisation from one kind or another” in the region.
Several nations claim territory in the resource-rich South China Sea, which is also an important shipping route.
The new US president has taken a tough stance against China, and Mr Spicer told reporters “the US is going to make sure we protect our interests” in the South China Sea. “If those islands are, in fact, in international waters and not part of China proper, yeah, we’ll make sure we defend international interests from being taken over by another country,” he said, without giving further details.
Chinese media said Mr Spicer’s comments would require Washington to “wage war”.
But the Chinese government gave a more measured response, saying that the US was “not a party to the South China Sea issue”.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Hua Chunying said China was “committed to peaceful negotiations with all countries concerned” in the dispute, and said it “respects the principles of freedom of navigation and over-flight in international waters”.
But, he went on: “Our position is clear. Our actions have been lawful.”
Map of disputed lands:
Rival countries have wrangled over territory in the South China Sea for centuries, but tension has steadily increased in recent years.
Its islets and waters are claimed in part or in whole by Taiwan, China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei.
China has backed its expansive claims with island-building and naval patrols, while the previous US administration said it opposed restrictions on freedom of navigation and unlawful sovereignty claims – by all sides, but seen by many as aimed at China.
The frictions have sparked concern that the area is becoming a flashpoint with global consequences.
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