China says G7 summit should focus on economy, development

Foreign Minister Wang Yi has urged the G7 to focus on economic, financial and development issues of global concern instead of exacerbating regional tensions related to the South China Sea issue.

"It is their own business what they discuss. However, they should maintain a fair and just stance on whatever they discuss and avoid double standard," Wang said here on Thursday at a press briefing on the preparation for the upcoming G20 Hangzhou Summit.

He said the G7 should not exacerbate or provoke regional tension.

Leaders of the G7 countries -- Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States -- and representatives from the European Union, convened in Japan's Ise-Shima for the summit, which runs Thursday through Friday.

Wang said that China hoped the G7, the members of which are also members of the G20, would coordinate with the G20 and play a positive and constructive role for a successful G20 summit.

China and Japan are two major economies accounting for a majority part of the Asian economic aggregate. It is the common will of Asian countries that the G7 summit could focus on development, and promote Asia's economic growth through cooperation and coordination with the G20, said Wang Yi.

He urged Japanese leaders to work toward this goal.

The foreign minister reiterated China's stance on the South China Sea, saying the disputes should be peacefully settled through dialogue and negotiation between directly-involved countries, based on international law and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC).

"China's stance is receiving understanding and support from more and more countries. We will stick to it," Wang said. Endi