We hope EU respects China's sovereignty

China's pursuit in the South China Sea has been consistently maintained. That is to safeguard national territorial integrity and maintain regional peace and tranquility.

Accordingly, although China is the victim of the South China Sea issue, it has been firmly committed to resolving disputes peacefully through friendly consultations and negotiations with countries directly concerned.

This sincerity and commitment by China has been a deciding factor for stability of the situation in the South China Sea.

Especially since the late 1990s, China has been proactively engaged with some directly concerned parties of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to work out possible solutions of sovereignty disputes over islands and reefs in question through bilateral consultation, and with the ASEAN as a whole to build up confidence and to collectively maintain peace and stability in the region.

I am proud to say that as head of the Chinese delegation taking part in the first few rounds of working group meeting on the draft of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, I contributed in a small measure to such a significant endeavor.

From my personal experience, working with the ASEAN and its member states, I should say that China and ASEAN members have the wisdom and every capability to resolve disputes peacefully and maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea on their own.

Now, China is working with ASEAN members to implement the declaration, and we are speeding up the "code of conduct in the South China Sea" consultation.

With a view to securing common interests and common objectives of maintaining long-lasting peace and stability in the South China Sea, China has made a few proposals.

First, the disputing parties must peacefully resolve their disputes through negotiation in accordance with the declaration. Article 4 of the declaration makes it crystal clear that the dispute must be resolved by the directly concerned states. And the leaders of China and 10 ASEAN members signed off on the declaration. This is a binding commitment. Regrettably, the Philippines has closed the door on dialogue with China. Still, China and other ASEAN members are doing our best to implement Article 4 of the declaration.

Second, pending eventual solutions, countries in the region, claimants or otherwise, that border the South China Sea must work together to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, and to uphold the freedom of navigation in accordance with international law. China has played and will continue to play its responsible and constructive role.

Third, it is hoped that countries outside the region support the resolution of the disputes through negotiation between the directly concerned parties, and support the efforts of China and the ASEAN to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea. We hope countries outside the region could play a constructive role.

So long as the above-mentioned points are put in place, peace and stability in the South China Sea will continue to be maintained.

As pointed out by Fu Ying and Wu Shichun in their article contributed to the National Interest, South China Sea: How We Got to This Stage, "The future direction will very much depend on the perceptions and choices of the parties involved. If they choose to cooperate, they may all win. If they choose to confront each other, they may only head for impasse or even conflict, and no one can benefit totally."

China and the European Union have shared strategic interests in maintaining the freedom and safety of navigation, and promoting stability and prosperity in the South China Sea. Yet China and the EU are not disputing parties, and the South China Sea issue is not an issue between the two.

Given this, we sincerely hope the EU will strictly abide by its political commitment to respect China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and China's position on the South China Sea issue, and refrain from taking any action that constitutes interference in the South China Sea issue. We also hope the EU will play a constructive role by supporting the resolution of the disputes through negotiation between the directly concerned parties, and support the efforts of China and the ASEAN to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea.

The author is head of the Chinese mission to the EU.