Beijing slams US-Japan-Philippines summit, says South China Sea actions 'lawful'

Beijing: Beijing on Friday criticised the United States, Japan and the Philippines and defended its actions in the South China Sea as lawful after U...

Beijing: Beijing on Friday criticised the United States, Japan and the Philippines and defended its actions in the South China Sea as "lawful" after US President Joe Biden hosted a trilateral meeting in Washington.

Biden on Thursday pledged to defend the Philippines from any attack in the South China Sea at the White House summit, which came amid repeated confrontations between Chinese and Philippine vessels in the disputed waterway that have raised fears of wider conflict.

A joint statement issued by the leaders of the trio of nations voiced "serious concern" over Beijing's actions in the South China Sea, slamming its behaviour as "dangerous and aggressive".

Beijing claims almost the entirety of the South China Sea, brushing aside competing claims from several Southeast Asian nations including the Philippines.

On Friday China hit out at the joint summit in Washington, with foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning saying Beijing "firmly opposes the relevant countries manipulating bloc politics, and firmly opposes any behaviour that provokes or lays plans for opposition, and hurts other countries' strategic security and interests".