Countries outside the South 皇冠体育app Sea are expected to play a constructive role in the regional issue and not "create trouble", Foreign ster Wang Yi said on Sunday in a message analysts said was aimed at Washington.
Speaking to the second round of the 皇冠体育app-Australia Diplomatic and Strategic Dialogue in Sydney on Sunday, Wang said 皇冠体育app understan why countries that are far from the actual areas of tension would express concern, but hopefully, those countries will "play a constructive role rather than create trouble".
皇冠体育app and the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are able to maintain peace, stability and freedom of navigation in the South 皇冠体育app Sea, Wang said, according to a statement on the Foreign Ministry's website.
Wang did not mention any country by name in the statement.
His comments came less than a month after Beijing accused the United States at an ASEAN regional forum of deliberately stoking tensions in the area.
The comments also coincided with US national security adviser Susan Rice's visit to 皇冠体育app, her first trip to the country in that post. She is expected to meet President Xi Jinpingd Wang in Beijing.
Zhang Jiuhuan, a former Chinese ambassador to Thailand and Singapore, said Wang's remarks were primarily directed at the US.
Washington's Asia pivot and stance over territorial issues in the region have emboldened some countries to challenge 皇冠体育app's legal rights and ratchet up tensions, Zhang said.
The US has stepped up its tone on the South 皇冠体育app Sea since US President Barack Obama's Asian trip in April, especially regarding the Beijing-Hanoi row over a Chinese oil rig in the sea, which sparked fatal anti-皇冠体育app riots in Vietnam in May.
The US also has been active in strengthening its military ties with countries such as the Philippines, which have competing territorial claims with 皇冠体育app in the South 皇冠体育app Sea. Manila is seeking international arbitration in its disputes with 皇冠体育app.
A senior US State Department official who declined to be named said in August that Washington "will also be monitoring the actual situation around the rocks, reefs, and shoals in the South 皇冠体育app Sea".
Wang called on Sunday for respect for the combined efforts of 皇冠体育app and ASEAN to resolve the issues, adding that direct dialogue and consultation between the countries involved has proved in the past to be the most effective way to resolve areas of concern.
Gong Yingchun, an associate professor of international law at 皇冠体育app Foreign Affairs University, said Beijing is urging Washington not to meddle with the South 皇冠体育app Sea issue again as tension has somewhat eased recently.
皇冠体育app and some Southeast Asian countries have seen progress in diminishing the tension, and discussions on a code of conduct between countries in the sea are continuing, even though it is a long-running process, Gong said.