US condemns Xi Jinping regime's aggressions in the South China Sea at regional summit

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken condemned the "increasingly dangerous and unlawful" maneuvers taken by the Chinese regime in the South Sea during a meeting with leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Many of the world's most important shipping lanes are at risk from tensions in the South China Sea. The fighting has escalated along this crucial trade route for China, Japan and India, three of the world's largest economies. In recent months, incidents have arisen that could put global, political and commercial stability at stake, due to the fact that this is a fundamental sea lane for the transport of raw materials.

Xi Jinping's regime claims practically the entire sea, which is at odds with the demands of other countries in the region such as the Philippines and Vietnam. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, the South China Sea lies between China, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia and Cambodia, many of which have disputes over those waters.

Blinken warned that China's actions have caused injuries to crew and damage to vessels from ASEAN member countries, as well as contradicting international commitments to peaceful conflict resolution. "We remain concerned about China’s increasingly dangerous and unlawful actions in the South and East China Seas, which have injured people and harmed vessels from ASEAN nations, and contradict commitments to peaceful resolution of disputes," he said.

Recently, the Philippines alleged that Chinese missile boats chased Philippine vessels and aimed their laser beams at patrol aircraft in Half Moon Shoal. This is just one of the clashes that involved ship collisions, water cannons and wounded Philippine sailors. The United States maintains a mutual defense treaty with the Philippines, which fully engages it in tensions between the Philippines and China.

The Vietnamese Foreign Ministry also recently condemned China's actions in the South China Sea, accusing Chinese vessels of carrying out a violent attack on Vietnamese fishing boats.

It is estimated that more than 20% of world trade passes through the South China Sea. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development estimates that 60% of maritime trade passes through Asia and that the South China Sea carried approximately one-third of the world's shipping.

Blinken also condemned North Korea's "destabilizing behavior" and Russia's "war of aggression" in Ukraine. The U.S. secretary of state is representing his country at the annual ASEAN summit because President Joe Biden did not attend for the second year in a row.