Peace, cooperation, friendship should be new narrative of South China Sea: Chinese FM

Peace, cooperation and friendship should be the new narrative of the South China Sea, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Sunday.

Wang made the statement at a press conference in Beijing on the sidelines of the ongoing fourth session of the 14th National People's Congress (NPC), China's supreme organ of state power.

"The South China Sea is home to the world's busiest, safest and freest shipping lanes. Over the past year, cooperation in the South China Sea has maintained a sound momentum. China had in-depth discussions with Indonesia on joint maritime development. China held bilateral dialogue with Malaysia on maritime issues and carried out cooperation with Vietnam on sustainable fisheries development. Just recently, China Coast Guard successfully rescued over a dozen Filipino crewmen distressed at the South China Sea. All these are ample proof that peace, cooperation and friendship should be the new narrative of the South China Sea. Making waves wins no hearts and fermenting trouble finds no takers," said Wang.

To achieve lasting peace and stability in the South China Sea requires solid institutional support, noted Wang, highlighting that consultations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC), a long-sought framework to manage differences, have now reached a critical juncture.

"To achieve lasting peace and stability in the South China Sea requires solid institutional support. As we continue with the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, consultation on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, the COC, as you mentioned, has reached crunch time. All relevant parties look forward to wrapping it up this year. Together with the parties, China has the confidence and the resolve to remove interference, bridge differences, expand common ground and reach an agreement as soon as possible. The COC will provide the golden rules for the parties to effectively manage differences, build trust, and advance cooperation," he said.

The foreign minister called for the Philippines to fulfill its responsibility as this year's ASEAN chair and make positive contributions to regional peace and stability.

"We hope that as this year's ASEAN chair, the Philippines will recognize and fulfill its responsibility, resist the pull of self-interest, and play a positive and constructive role for peace and stability in the region," said Wang.

The fourth session of the 14th NPC opened on Thursday and is scheduled to run till March 12.

Peace, cooperation, friendship should be new narrative of South China Sea: Chinese FM

Nicaragua's co-foreign minister Valdrack Jaentschke has warned that militarism must never be allowed to rise again, as Japan's recent moves to lift its arms export ban and revise the pacifist Constitution continue to draw international concern.

This year marks the 80th anniversary of the opening of the Tokyo Trials, where Japan's Class-A war criminals from World War II were brought to justice.

In an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Valdrack Jaentschke voiced his concern that today's world order is being undermined by interventionism and other challenges.

"It is necessary for us to remember that after the end of World War II, countries worked hard to build a new international order based on international law. However, regrettably, more than 80 years later, we are seeing that this once explored and attempted order is being challenged by interventionism, a confrontational mindset, and tendencies like 'might makes right.' These are precisely the conditions that gave rise to fascism and militarism in the past, which ultimately led to the tragedy of World War II," he said.

He said the international community has a responsibility to pursue a new international order -- one fundamentally grounded in peace.

"Looking back at the history more than eight decades ago and comparing it with today's reality, it is our responsibility to recognize that the world should, and must, build a new international order that is more just, fairer, rooted in international law, based on a logic of mutual benefit and shared success, and fundamentally grounded in peace," said the minister.

"Today, as we revisit the Tokyo Trials, it is meant to remind the world that such a tragedy must never be repeated -- and that we must do everything in our power to prevent it from happening again. We must stop that dark world -- born from militarism, interventionism, and fascism -- from ever returning," he said.

Nicaraguan FM warns of militarism revival