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China values free navigation in South China Sea more than any other country: senior military official

Xinhua, May 13, 2016 Adjust font size:

China values the freedom of navigation and peace and stability in the South China Sea more than any other country in the world, said Fang Fenghui, a member of China's Central Military Commission (CMC), on Thursday.

Fang, who is also chief of the newly-established Joint Staff Department under the CMC, made the remarks during a video conversation with U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Joseph Dunford.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama have reached major consensus on building a new model of major-country relationship between China and the United States featuring non-conflict, non-confrontation, mutual respect and win-win cooperation, which opens up the only correct way for the development of bilateral ties, said Fang.

Based on the consensus, the two militaries have continuously deepened their communication and cooperation in various fields and established relevant mutual trust mechanisms, said Fang, calling for joint efforts to treasure and maintain the hard-won momentum in the development of relations between the two countries and militaries.

On the South China Sea issue, Fang noted that it is not China that has created tensions, urging the two sides to bear the overall situation in mind and manage their differences in a constructive way.

The Chinese general also calls on the two sides to refrain from actions detrimental to the relations between the two countries and the two militaries.

The common ground and scope for cooperation between China and the United States far outweigh their differences and contradictions, Fang said, noting that China stands ready to work with the U.S. side to implement the important consensus reached by their heads of state.

Dunford, for his part, said the overall relations between the two militaries are sound and well except for occasional frictions.

And confrontation and conflicts between the two countries are not in the fundamental interests of the two peoples, he said.

The U.S. side is willing to work with China to establish an effective mechanism on risk control so as to maintain stability in the South China Sea by peaceful means, Dunford said.

The United States hopes all related parties will exercise restraint and prevent the tensions in the South China sea from growing, he said. Endi