China Says It Has Every Right To Impose Air Defence Identification Zone

By Niam Seet Wei BEIJING (China), May 8 (Bernama) -- China has every right to impose an air defence identification zone (ADIZ), and those who intentionally hype up the ADIZ issue obviously have ulterior motives, says Foreign Ministry spokesman Hua Chunying. Currently, the overall situation in the South China Sea was stable, and China enjoyed good relations with ASEAN countries, Hua told a press briefing here Thursday. "We have been actively promoting mutually beneficial cooperation with ASEAN countries, and jointly safeguarding peace and stability in the South China Sea," she added. Reuters reported on Thursday that China had warned the Philippine air force and navy aircrafts to leave areas around the South China Sea for at least six times over the past three months as the planes were in China's military security area. On Nov 23, 2013, China announced the establishment of the ADIZ, saying it was a necessary measure to protect its state sovereignty and territorial and airspace security. The area covers the East China Sea airspace, including the disputed Senkaku Islands (known as the Diaoyu Islands in China) and the Socotra Rock (known as Suyan Jiao in China). --BERNAMA