China’s state media Huanqiu published an editorial in which its tone was one of lecturing Hillary Clinton and the U.S. about the recent territorial disputes between China and it’s neighboring countries. Below is a partial translation of the editorial.
“Before her visit to China, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton revealed that she was going to talk to China about the South China Sea and other territorial disputes in East Asia. Talk about what? Talk about the sovereign ownership of the Nansha and Diaoyu Islands? Impossible. Talk about the road map to resolve the territorial issues in East Asia? Also impossible.
“The only thing the two sides can talk about is ‘grand principles,’ but there is not much room for that either. Hillary will probably reiterate the ‘peaceful settlement’ principle, to which China will not object. She will also ask China to involve ASEAN in the talks on the South China Sea issue, but China will never accept (this idea). China’s principle is to deal with the specific disputes with countries in a one-on-one negotiation. (China) has long denied these so-called ‘multilateral negotiations.’
“There is not much China and America can discuss. In other words, it is useless to talk. The South China Sea and the Diaoyu Islands dispute have now become so prominent. The root cause behind the scenes is the United States. The United States encouraged and instigated countries that have territorial disputes with China with its ‘return to Asia’ to undermine the environment surrounding China’s development and to harass and inhibit China’s rise.
“China very much hopes that the United States will not intervene in the South China Sea dispute, and very much hopes that the United States truly remains neutral in the Sino-Japanese dispute over the Diaoyu Islands, but no matter how hard and earnest China tries, it is impossible to move Hillary.
“China and the United States have formed a huge (mutual) distrust. It is unrealistic to break it through conversation. China and the United States judge each other by their actions.
“Hillary Clinton has been trying to challenge China’s legitimate core interests in the South China Sea and the East China Sea, but she understands that when facing China’s firm determination to safeguard its national interests, the United States needs to choose its most favorable reaction. That’s enough. China should not let the US have any doubts or other misjudgments regarding its determination.”
Source: Huanqiu, September 5, 2012
http://mil.huanqiu.com/observation/2012-09/3098896.html