SUMMARY
BEIJING, China – China said the United States must refrain from “stirring up trouble” or taking sides on the South China Sea issue, after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a security deal with the Manila extended to attacks on the Philippine coast guard.
Blinken called the US security commitment with the Philippines “ironclad,” and said China’s actions in the South China Sea had triggered a wider international reaction.
The Chinese embassy in Philippines said in a statement on Wednesday that Chinese activities in the South China Sea were “legitimate and lawful,” adding that Blinken’s remarks “ignore the facts, baselessly accuse China.”
It also said Blinken has again “threatened China with the so-called US-Philippine Mutual Defense Treaty obligations,” which China firm…