Obama, Xi meet amid maritime tensions
September 3, 2016, 4:53 pm

The meeting of the heads of state comes as the Obama administration is pushing its Asia pivot plan through [Xinhua]

The trip comes amid tensions between Beijing and Washington over the Obama administration’s so-called Asia pivot – to boost US alliances with Asian countries and shift military focus there in a bid to implement a strategy of rebalance in the Asia-Pacific region.

Some in the US government say that China’s expansion and claims to maritime territory – specifically, the South China Sea – is a direct challenge to US security, and have called for “the development and implementation of a comprehensive strategy for the maritime commons of the Indo-Pacific region”.

Beijing has persistently criticized the White House pivot as a bid to contain its rising economic and political clout.

Obama’s meeting with Xi is the first high level contact since a Hague-based arbitration court ruled that China has no historic title over the waters of the South China Sea and that it has breached the Philippines’ sovereign rights with its actions.

The Philippines had filed a complaint with the Arbitral Tribunal questioning the validity of China’s “nine-dash” territorial claim, a demarcation on official Chinese maps that envelops virtually the entire South China Sea.

China, which claims and exercises jurisdiction over about 2 million square km of the maritime territory, called the Hague ruling a farce.

China and the United States have traded accusations of militarizing the South China Sea.

The United States has increased its patrols and exercises in the region.

Addressing the growing tensions in the South China Sea, Xi told Obama he wanted the United States to “play a constructive role” in maintaining peace and stability in that region.

Xi said that while Beijing will not hesitate to protect its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights in the region, it is dedicated to bilateral negotiations to resolve disputes.

But Xi also told Obama that China is opposed to the US deployment of advanced missile shield technology in South Korea, in response to growing tensions with North Korea.

The US and its South Korean ally will deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, or THAAD, as a response to Pyongyang’s recent ballistic missile tests.

As one of the most advanced missile defense systems in the world, THAAD can intercept and destroy ballistic missiles inside or just outside the atmosphere during their final phase of flight.

Despite claims by Washington and Seoul that the missile shield would be focused solely on North Korea, Beijing says the US deployment would pose considerable threat to neighboring countries, and a direct threat to the strategic security of China and Russia.

Xi told Obama the US should respect China’s strategic security interests.

The BRICS Post with inputs from Agencies