China 'offers joint drills with Asean in South China Sea to check US plan to send warships near Spratly Islands
Beijing extends olive branch to Southeast Asian nations in proposal signalling shift in its approach to growing regional concerns over its island reclamations
Beijing is willing to hold joint drills with Southeast Asian countries in the disputed South China Sea, the defence minister said on Friday in what analysts saw as a response to Washington's plan to sail its warships around the Spratly Islands, which China claims as territory.
Striking a conciliatory tone over an increasingly tense spat in the oil-rich region, Defence Minister Chang Wanquan told his counterparts from the Association of South East Asian Nations at an informal summit in Beijing that there was a need for all to push for the "correct" development of ties.
In a statement on the Defence Ministry's microblog, Chang was cited as saying that all sides should manage and control the risks from their disputes.
Beijing was willing to hold joint military exercises in the South China Sea with the Asean nations next year, covering accidental encounters, search and rescue as well as disaster relief, the statement said.
Analysts say the proposal signals a shift in Beijing's approach to growing regional concerns over its island reclamations.
Beijing has so far responded angrily to the United States' plan to send its naval vessels in the coming days into the 12-nautical-mile zone around China's newly built artificial islands in the Spratlys, vowing to deliver a "head-on blow" to any foreign force that "violates" its sovereignty.
