Dialogue the right way to resolve disputes

Addressing a plenary meeting of the 78th Session of the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, China's Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations Geng Shuang stressed that China respects all countries' freedom of navigation in the South China Sea in accordance with international law, but firmly opposes any country using this as a pretext to undermine China's sovereignty and security interests.

His reiteration of China's stance is timely, since the situation in the South China Sea has once again become increasingly turbulent after a lull in the past few years. The cause of this turbulence is the Philippines, which, as a result of United States' agitation, has chosen to make waves again in the waters.

Emboldened by Washington's support, Manila has been using freedom of navigation as a pretext to encroach upon China's territorial integrity and maritime interests in the South China Sea. Its blatant attempt to assert the Philippines' unfounded and illegal claim to Ren'ai Reef has naturally raised the hackles of Beijing. Ren'ai Reef has always been an integral part of China's Nansha Islands. But in 1999, the Philippines illegally grounded a World War II-era warship there with the obvious purpose of creating the fait accompli that the reef belongs to the Philippines. Since then, Manila has repeatedly promised to remove the warship, but it never fulfilled that pledge.