China Needs Friends in South China Sea Not Enemies, U.S. Says
- U.S. would welcome China's emergence as a responsible partner
- U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken speaks in Hanoi
South China Sea: The Next Global Flashpoint?
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Chinese assertiveness in the South China Sea is more likely to create adversaries who would unite against China rather than advance its interests, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken told university students in Hanoi on Thursday.
“Often what happens in history when one nation emerges and rises is that other nations get very nervous,” Blinken said. When the rising nation “uses its size and strength, not its ideas, to advance its interest, it’s going to create adversaries” and other countries will get together to prevent its rise, he said.