Beijing slams Obama remarks

From the Manila Standard Today (Apr 12): Beijing slams Obama remarks

THE United States is like a “thief crying ‘stop, thief’” in asserting that China is using its “sheer size and muscle” to bully smaller claimants such as the Philippines and Vietnam in the South China Sea, Beijing said through state new agency Xinhua on Saturday.

“The world’s leading superpower, which believes policing the world is its destiny, sometimes however seems to have a penchant for playing the trick of thief crying ‘stop, thief’,” the state news agency said in a commentary without a byline.

“Such finger-pointing laid bare again the mind-boggling hypocrisy of the United States, which takes habitual tactics of standing facts on their heads as well as blame-shifting.

“Arbitrarily exercising its mighty military power, the United States is the real bully in the world who has rarely missed an opportunity to stoke tensions between China and its neighbors,” the commentary added.

The article said China is “elbowing aside” no one by carrying out construction and maintenance work on some islands and reefs in the Nansha Islands, which fall entirely within its sovereignty.

It is the United States that has been busy elbowing countries like the Philippines into deliberate and serious provocations against China, triggering conflicts and undercutting regional stability, it added.

But Malacañang said the Philippines has broad international support in its maritime dispute with China because of the peaceful approach it is taking.

“The country’s position, when it comes to this maritime dispute in the West Philippine Sea, as you can see, has received broad international support because it’s... We have adopted the peaceful track,” deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said in a radio interview.

“We have committed to pursuing our cause through recognized fora, and that we continue to adopt the rules-based approach,” she added.

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