China traded barbs Thursday with the United States and Japan regarding the territorial disputes it is having with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in the South China Sea, telling the nonclaimants to mind their own business.
"China and ASEAN have agreed that the disputes in the South China Sea should be resolved peacefully through consultations and negotiations between countries directly concerned, and countries that are not parties to the disputes should not get involved," Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said at the East Asia Summit in Brunei.
Prime Minister Shinzo Abe urged all countries concerned to abide by international law and refrain from unilateral action and the use of force in addressing the South China Sea issue, making an indirect reference to Beijing's increasingly assertive claims to most of the disputed waters.