(MENAFN- Qatar News Agency) Ngapore may 31 (qna) - the united states warned china on saturday to halt destabilising actions in asia as washington and its allies sought to boost defence cooperation in the face of what japan called an "increasingly severe" security environment.
u.s. defense secretary chuck hagel told an asia-pacific security forum that the united states was committed to its geopolitical rebalance to the region and "will not look the other way when fundamental principles of the international order are being challenged".
"in recent months china has undertaken destabilising unilateral actions asserting its claims in the south china sea" he said in the speech to the shangri-la dialogue in singapore.
hagel said the united states took no position on the merits of rival territorial claims in the region but added: "we firmly oppose any nation's use of intimidation coercion or the threat of force to assert these claims." china claims almost the entire oil- and gas-rich south china seas and dismisses competing claims from taiwan brunei vietnam the philippines and malaysia. japan has its own territorial row with china over islands in the east china sea. (qna)
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