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The Warning of the China Embassy in the Philippines follows criticism from a senior EU responsible for Beijing.
China has told the European Union to stop “provoking trouble” at the Southern China Sea after the EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas expressed his concerns about Beijing’s coercive activities in the strategically important navigable path.
“We urge the EU to truly respect the territorial sovereignty of China and maritime rights and interests in the Sea of Southern China and to stop trouble,” a spokesman for the Chinese Embassy in Manila on Thursday.
China said the EU was not allowed to intervene in regional issues, and advised the Philippines that it should prevent “fantasizing from counting external forces” to resolve disputes concerning the sovereignty of the Southern China Sea.
The Warning of the China’s Embassy follows a meeting between Kallas and the Foreign Foreign Minister of the Philippines, Enrique Manalo, in Manila earlier this week, where they announced a new dialogue of security and defense between the EU and the Philippines to counter threats such as foreign interference, cyberattacks and misinformation campaigns.
The two parties also expressed concerns concerning “illegal, coercive, aggressive and misleading measures”
Questioned by journalists on the red lines of the EU to China at the Southern China Sea, Kallas said that the EU is committed to maintaining peace and an order based on rules.
“We reject any unilateral modification of the status quo, including the use of coercion,” said Kallas.
Half a dozen countries, including the Philippines, claim different parts of the Southern China Sea, but Beijing claims sovereignty over almost everything.
The contradictory statements extend to the exclusive economic areas of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Vietnam, leading to frequent altercations between China and its neighbors.
