BEIJING: China on Wednesday reacted strongly to the Quad Ministerial meeting that voiced serious concerns over the situation in the East and South China Sea, saying they should stop meddling in maritime affairs in its neighbourhood.
The situation in the East China Sea and the South China Sea is generally stable, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing here while responding to a question on the Quad meeting in Delhi.
Foreign Ministers of Quad countries, comprising the US, India, Japan and Australia, explicitly voiced serious concerns over the situation in the East and South China Sea on Tuesday and denounced coercive actions threatening regional peace and stability, without directly naming China.
"Certain countries should stop meddling in maritime affairs in China's neighbourhood and earnestly respect regional countries’ efforts to safeguard peace and stability," Mao said.
"Those who attempt to patch up small groupings, hype up tensions and stoke confrontation will find no support," she added.
China claims most of the South China Sea as its own, while the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei and Taiwan have counter claims.
In the East China Sea, Beijing has a maritime dispute with Tokyo over the uninhabited islets called Senkakus, controlled by Japan. China calls them the Diaoyu Islands.
The Quad meeting was chaired by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and attended by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi.
Mao on Tuesday reiterated China’s opposition to the Quad, saying that Beijing is opposed to the formation of exclusive groupings and engaging in bloc confrontation.
“Cooperation between countries should be conducive to regional peace, stability and prosperity, and not target any third party,” Mao said.
“We oppose forming exclusive groupings or engaging in bloc confrontation," she said.
China has been opposing the Quad alliance, terming it as Asian NATO aimed at containing its rise.