The US State Department made remarks viciously attacking China during the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to Vietnam. The Embassy of the People's Republic of China in the Socialist Republic of Vietnam hereby makes a statement as follows: 

China consistently pursues the path of peaceful development and is committed to developing good-neighborly and friendly cooperation relations with all countries on the basis of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. It supports multilateralism and firmly upholds the UN-centered international system and the international order based on international law. It champions a fair and just international order and advocates global cooperation defined by consultation, contribution for shared benefits. It resolutely opposes hegemony, unilateralism and acts of bullyism, and seeks dialogue instead of confrontation, consultation instead of coercion, win-win instead of zero-sum game.

The US vociferously peddles the Indo-Pacific strategy and the expansion of the QUAD. It is in fact instigating confrontation between factions and pursuing geopolitical competition. The US attempts to drag ASEAN countries into its Indo-Pacific strategy and use the latter as pawns in cementing its hegemony, which will severely dilute ASEAN centrality in regional cooperation. What it should do is contribute to regional peace, stability and development. Forming isolated and exclusive geo-political factions that undermine the interests of third parties will gain no support.

The US directly steps in the South China Sea issue to attack and smear China. In no way is it trying to help regional countries to settle disputes. Instead, it is inciting certain countries to confrontation with China. To maintain its maritime hegemony, the US refuses to join UNCLOS. Hence it is in no position to be the judge on the South China Sea issue. China believes that regional countries can tell right and wrong, adhere to independence and autonomy, and refuse to be manipulated.

The South China Sea is the shared home of China and Southeast Asian countries. It shouldn't become a battlefield for international politics. Even less should it become a tool for a major power from outside the region to undermine peace and stability of the region. After years of efforts, regional countries have established effective mechanisms to properly address disputes through dialogues and consultation. China and ASEAN have reached clear-cut consensus on maintaining peace and stability of the South China Sea. China is consistently and conscientiously committed to international law including UNCLOS, respects and supports freedom of navigation and overflight all countries enjoy in accordance with international law, and makes active efforts for a safe and smooth international navigational watercourse. China will continue to abide by international law and the norms governing international relations established in the UN Charter, adhere to settling disputes through bilateral negotiations with parties directly concerned on the basis of respecting historical facts, step up COC consultation and maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea together with regional countries.

The US is obsessed with hyping the water resource issue in the Lancang-Mekong region. What it says is entirely against facts and has no scientific basis. Countries in the region are all entitled to properly develop and use water resources. There are over 300 hydro-power stations along the river, including 11 built by China, which all play a regulatory role and contribute to the sustainable economic and social development in the region. The international science community and the Mekong River Commission have already reached consensus on that. To implement the initiative put forward by Premier Li Keqiang at the third Lancang-Mekong Cooperation leaders' meeting, China and Mekong countries have signed an agreement to share year-round hydrological data from Lancang river. From November 1, China will start providing data to the five Mekong countries including Vietnam, and the Mekong River Commission. This is well received by regional countries.

The US unscrupulously peddles the so-called threat posed by China, cooks up anti-China political lies, instigates ideological confrontation, sows discord between China and regional countries, attempting to drag the world into a new cold war and plunge the world into the abyss of confrontation and division. Its malicious actions have severely violated the norms governing international relations and the basic principles of diplomacy, and have fully exposed its cold war mentality and ideological prejudice. China is strongly opposed to that and sternly urges the US to abandon the cold war mentality of zero-sum game, stop making up lies about China being a threat, stop sowing discord between regional countries and stop undermining regional peace and stability.

 The world today needs solidarity and cooperation, not confrontation and division. Regional security and stability in the South China Sea need to be maintained through dialogue and consultation, not by forming factions. Cooperation in the Mekong subregion needs consultation and joint contribution, not deliberate smear campaigns. With the ASEAN Summit and related summits around the corner, China calls upon regional countries to exclude all external interference, jointly focus on the two themes of fighting the pandemic and seeking development together, firmly support multilateralism and free trade and make positive contributions to regional peace, stability and development.