Regional apple tree blighted by Washington

The recent state visits of President Xi Jinping to Vietnam, Malaysia and Cambodia, as his first overseas trip of the year, highlight the importance Beijing attaches to relations with neighboring countries. As the central conference on work related to neighboring countries that convened before his trip made clear, China hopes to work with countries in the region to consolidate the traditional friendship and enhance the strategic mutual trust and practical cooperation that have served to make the neighborhood a vibrant and dynamic community with a shared future.

It is regrettable, therefore, that the Philippines seems intent on proving itself to be a bad apple. In its latest misguided move, around 5,000 Philippine troops began military exercises with about 9,000 US troops on Monday.

The drills, which will run until May 9, are being staged in western and northern Philippine locations facing the South China Sea and the island of Taiwan, which, thanks to repeated provocations from the United States and the Philippines, have become regional flash points.