Obama Crashes G20 by Warning Beijing of ‘Consequences’ in the South China Sea
SputnikNews.com
05.09.2016
After being poorly received at the airport ahead of the G20 Summit, President Obama created a stir at the summit threatening “consequences” against China while in the country as a guest.
On Monday, President Barack Obama leveled a severe warning against what he views as China’s continued misbehavior in the South China Sea saying that there will be “consequences” if Beijing refuses to back down from its increasingly aggressive behavior that he says is worrying its neighbors.
“Part of what I’ve tried to communicate to President Xi (Jinping) is that the United States arrives at its power, in part, by restraining itself,” said Obama in a CNN interview. “You know, when we bind ourselves to a bunch of international norms and rules, it’s not because we have to, it’s because we recognize that, over the long-term, building a strong international order is in our interest. And, I think, over the long-term, it will be in China’s interests, as well.”
The statements fell flat given President Obama’s plainly stated goal of minimizing China’s regional influence as part of his “Asian pivot” as well as in light of recent diplomatic friction with a key American ally, the Philippines, whose President accused the United States of treating it as a colony on Monday before erupting in an obscenity laden tirade against the US President. Obama announced that he refused to meet his Filipino counterpart on Monday as a result.
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