The Group of Seven foreign ministers are to call on countries to resolve territorial disputes peacefully in accordance with international law when they meet in Hiroshima in what will be seen as a response to China's aggressive military posture in the South China Sea, a government source said Thursday.
In a statement to be issued after the two-day meeting that kicks off on Sunday, the ministers are expected to say that stakeholders in territorial disputes should abide by international court decisions, the source said.
Even though the statement is unlikely to name China, it is apparently aimed at Beijing, which has been asserting its power in the region by constructing military runways, advanced radars and deploying surface-to-air missiles in the Spratly Islands and Paracel Islands.