Newsgroups: bit.listserv.seasia-l
Date:         Fri, 4 Sep 1992 11:18:36 -0400
From:         Nhan Tran <tran@PEORA.SDC.CCUR.COM>
Subject:      NEWS: Spratlys & China

09/03

China assures peace in South China Sea

	JAKARTA, Indonesia (UPI) -- China will not alter its claim to the
Spratly Islands but said the issue will not affect peace in the region,
Chinese Foreign Minister Qian Qichen said Thursday.
	Qichen told the official news agency Antara that his country's
attitude would remain unchanged and there were no indications that the
other countries involved in the dispute would change their positions.
	Qichen was in Jakarta to attend the 10th Non-Aligned Movement Summit.
	He said the differences among the parties involved ``must be put
aside to maintain peace and tranquility in the region.''
	Along with China and Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and
Brunei also claim all or part of the Spratlys, an archipelago beleived
to sit above vast oil and mineral deposits. The islands are uninhabited
except for military outposts.

--------------------------------------

09/03

CHINA WILL NOT ALTER SPRATLYS CLAIM; SAYS IT WILL NOT AFFECT PEACE IN REGION

JAKARTA, Indonesia (SEPT. 3) UPI - China will not alter its claim to the
Spratly Islands but said the issue will not affect peace in the region, Chinese
Foreign Minister Qian Qichen said Thursday.

Qichen told the official news agency Antara that his country's attitude would
remain unchanged and there were no indications that the other countries
involved in the dispute would change their positions.

Qichen was in Jakarta to attend the 10th Non-Aligned Movement Summit.

He said the differences among the parties involved ''must be put aside to
maintain peace and tranquility in the region.''

Along with China and Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Brunei also
claim all or part of the Spratlys, an archipelago beleived to sit above vast
oil and mineral deposits. The islands are uninhabited except for military
outposts.

--------------------------------------

09/03

SUMMIT REJECTS CHINA PLEA ON SOUTH CHINA SEA ROW

    By Lai Kwok Kin
    JAKARTA, Sept 3, Reuter - The Non-Aligned Movement, disregarding China's
objections that it should not get involved, is expected to back southeast Asia's
call to settle South China Sea disputes peacefully, delegates said on Thursday.
    The summit's final declaration to be issued at the end of the six-day
meeting on Sunday is likely to endorse a set of principles outlined by southeast
Asian nations for settling regional disputes, they said.
    China, making its debut in the movement as an observer, objected on Sunday
to disputes over the Spratly Islands and other overlapping claims being
discussed at the summit.
    It says these could internationalise the issue, which should be settled
between the parties involved.
    The Spratly Islands are a group of reefs and atolls straddling vital sea
lanes and thought to sit atop rich deposits of oil, gas and other natural
resources. Diplomats have said the dispute could turn into Asia's next
flashpoint.
    The islands are claimed in whole or in part by China, Vietnam, Taiwan,
Malaysia, the Philippines and Brunei. Unlike the other five, China claims
sovereignty over virtually the entire South China Sea.
    Tension rose earlier this year when China occupied one of the islands. In
May Beijing awarded a contract to Crestone Energy Corp of the United States to
jointly explore for oil in an area near the islands. It said it was ready to
defend the contract militarily.
    One delegate said Vietnam and the six-member Association of South East Asian
Nations (ASEAN) had managed to persuade other Movement members to discuss the
South China Sea disputes at the summit's political committee this week.
    The summit is expected to endorse a set of principles outlined in Manila in
July by ministers of ASEAN -- Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Singapore and Thailand.
    Delegates said China had raised its objections at the political session and
later tried to refer to the Spratly Islands by their Chinese name Nansha
(Southern Sands), but other members rejected this.
    They said the summit declaration would urge settlement of the disputes by
"peaceful means, without recourse to force and for exercising restraint" while
remaining open to "constructive proposals" for an eventual resolution.
    It would also urge the creation of a positive climate "to open the prospects
of realising mutually beneficial cooperation" -- which the sources said meant
allowing two or more countries with overlapping claims to jointly develop
resources while the disputes were being resolved.
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