Carter repeats US stance on S China Sea in ‘cordial’ meeting with Chang
US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter has reiterated on the country’s stance towards China’s islands in a “cordial” meeting with his Chinese counterpart, US officials say.
In a "business-like and cordial" meeting with Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan in the Malaysian capital Kuala Lumpur, Carter said Tuesday that the US would continue operations in the region, gripped by territorial disputes.
Beijing has been warning Washington over its provocative acts in the region that included sending a guided-missile destroyer on October 27 within the 12 nautical miles of one of China’s artificial islands.
During the meeting, "they made it clear that they don't like these measures," one US official told AFP.
"But there was none of the fiery rhetoric that you may have seen in media from other officials," he further claimed.
Carter, on the other hand, “made the case that the South China Sea would not be an exception," another official said, adding that the defense secretary “once again reaffirmed that the United States will continue to fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows."
The remarks were exchanged was held on the sideline of a meeting in Kuala Lumpur with defense ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in attendance.
The defense chiefs are set to officially meet with Carter and other defense officials from Russia, Australia, and other countries.
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