By Andy Sharp

(Bloomberg) — Foreign Ministers from the Group of Seven main economies expressed concern over territorial disputes in Asian waters the place China has been extra aggressively asserting its claims in recent times.

“We are concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas, and emphasize the fundamental importance of peaceful management and settlement of disputes,” the ministers stated in a joint assertion on the finish of a two-day assembly in Hiroshima.

“We express our strong opposition to any intimidating, coercive or provocative unilateral actions that could alter the status quo and increase tensions, and urge all states to refrain from such actions as land reclamations, including large scale ones, building out outposts, as well as their use for military purposes and to act in accordance with international law including the principles of freedoms of navigation and overflight.”

While the communique didn’t explicitly title China, it contained a transparent message important of Beijing’s ambitions within the waters — a key maritime artery for commerce and vitality shipments. Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Saturday stated the G-7 assembly shouldn’t “hype” the problem.

‘Stronger Base’

“The G-7 is going through the motions of making it clear to China that if they do something more there will be a cost to bear,” stated Malcolm Davis, a senior analyst on the Australian Strategic Policy Institute in Canberra. “The G-7 statement gives the Americans a much stronger base to go to their key allies, including Australia, to get them to act in concert with them.”

The U.S. is eager to rally worldwide political help earlier than a world tribunal in The Hague makes a ruling later this yr on a case introduced by the Philippines towards China’s claims within the South China Sea, Davis stated. Any try and get the same assertion from the United Nations could be blocked by China, which is a member of the Security Council. “The G-7 statement is probably the best the Americans can get at this stage,” Davis stated.

China claims greater than 80 % of the South China Sea and has constructed synthetic islands there, some with airstrips able to touchdown navy plane. In latest months, Japan has stepped up its criticism of China’s actions within the waters, whereas the U.S. final yr sailed a warship close to Chinese “islands,” displaying it doesn’t acknowledge them as having the identical rights as Chinese territory. China’s claims to one of many world’s busiest delivery lanes overlap with these of 5 different nations.

Japan can be engaged in its personal dispute with China within the East China Sea over a sequence of uninhabited islands administered by Japan. Ships from the 2 nations repeatedly tail one another close to the islets often called Senkaku in Japanese and Diaoyu in Chinese.

A commentary Sunday in China’s official Xinhua News service blasted Japan for attempting to “hijack” the G-7 assembly, calling the Tokyo authorities a “regional wave-maker keen on rocking the boat.”

“Long uncomfortable with China’s rising influence in the region, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his administration have never passed up an opportunity to trip up and contain China,” columnist Zhu Dongyang stated. “Behind their unwonted interests in accusing China of militarizing the South China Sea is Tokyo’s real scheme to provoke the West into lashing out at China.”

Other Claimants

Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan even have claims within the South China Sea that fall inside China’s nine-dash line, the delineation of China’s claims that first appeared on a 1947 map. China’s buying and selling affect is more and more matched by an expanded navy presence within the area. China has deployed missiles, radars and fighter jets in territory it controls within the space and has stepped up its naval patrols within the waters.

China and the opposite claimant states should not a part of the assembly in Hiroshima. The G-7 assembly additionally included overseas ministers from the U.Okay., Germany, Canada, France, and Italy, in addition to representatives of the European Union.

–With help from David Tweed.

© 2016 Bloomberg L.P