China says Japan 'shameless' for cutting price on weapons sales to India
China said it would be 'a shameless move' if Japan 'uses weapons sales for ulterior motives'.
Ananth Krishnan | Posted by Ruchi Dua
Beijing, September 13, 2016 | UPDATED 22:14 IST
HIGHLIGHTS
- 1Japan 'shameless' for cutting price on weapons sales to India, says China.
- 2It would be "a shameless move" if Japan "uses weapons sales for ulterior motives", China said.
- 3Japanese officials are open to lowering the price considering overall ties with India.
China has slammed Japan as "shameless" for reportedly considering lowering the price on a major defence deal with India in exchange for support on the South China Sea.
In unusually strong language, the Chinese Foreign Ministry on Tuesday said it would be "a shameless move" if Japan "uses weapons sales for ulterior motives".
"We hold no objection to state cooperation including defence cooperation as long as such cooperation is normal," Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying said at a regular briefing.
"But it is reported that the Japanese government is to cut the price to sell weapons to India with an aim to pressurise China on the South China Sea issue and such attempt is targeted at China. If such a report is true then we don't think the purpose such cooperation is right."
JAPANESE OFFICIALS OPEN TO LOWERING PRICE
Hua was responding to a question from a Chinese journalist quoting a media report on long-running negotiations between India and Japan for the sale of US-2 amphibious aircraft. The report said Japanese officials were open to lowering the price considering overall ties with India, and pointed out that Tokyo had been keen for Delhi to take a stronger position on the South China Sea issue.
While Japan has called for a July arbitration tribunal ruling that favoured the Philippines in its dispute with China to be implemented, India has taken a more calibrated approach, merely calling for the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, under which the tribunal was convened, to be respected.
CHINA UNHAPPY WITH JAPAN'S MOVES
China has been angered by Japan's moves to sell military equipment to the Philippines, as well as by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's stand on the South China Sea. While Japan is not a party to the South China Sea dispute, tensions with China over disputed East China Sea islands have strained relations.
Hua said that while China has "no objection to normal defence cooperation", it would be a "shameless move" if the weapons sales had "ulterior motives" to pressure China on the South China Sea.
No comments:
Post a Comment