China warns US on South China Sea row as Clinton visits

China urged the US not to meddle in regional disputes, as US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton began a two-day visit to the country.

Mrs Clinton arrived late on Tuesday after talks in Indonesia which focused on territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
On Wednesday she will meet several of China's top leaders, including President Hu Jintao.
Topics including Syria, Iran and North Korea are also set to be discussed.
Mrs Clinton was met in Beijing by Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi, with whom she is due to give a joint press conference later on Wednesday.
In opening remarks, she said the US was "committed to building a co-operative partnership with China". Mr Yang, meanwhile, said strong ties served "the fundamental interests" of both nations.
Territorial rows Ahead of Mrs Clinton's arrival, the Chinese foreign ministry expressed its hope that the US would maintain its previously stated position of neutrality over the South China Sea disputes.

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Analysis

Jonathan Marcus BBC diplomatic correspondent

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The importance of the South China Sea island territories is clear - they represent footholds of sovereignty, sometimes of strategic importance - but also a ticket to the exploitation of natural resources such as minerals and fisheries.
Mrs Clinton may have chosen her words carefully but this is not really a moment for Sino-US harmony.
The political cycles in both countries - looming high-level leadership changes in Beijing and the presidential race in the US - mean that there is a good measure of nationalism on the one hand and some China-bashing on the other.
For Beijing, Washington's pivot to Asia and its new military strategy "AirSea Battle" suggest a policy of containing China.
And many in Washington fear that China's strident espousal of its territorial claims raise questions about its willingness to play the part of a responsible stakeholder in international affairs.

"We hope the US side will keep its commitment and make efforts that help, rather than harm, regional peace and stability," foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei told reporters.

In addition, one state-run newspaper has accused the secretary of state of causing profound mistrust between the two countries.
In talks at the headquarters of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) in the Indonesian capital Jakarta, Mrs Clinton called on Asean countries to stand together on the issue and pushed for a code of conduct governing maritime territorial disputes.
China has competing territorial claims with four Asean member-states in the South China Sea. The rows have led to increased tensions in the region.
Earlier this year, vessels from China and the Philippines faced off for several weeks over one area, the Scarborough Shoal.
Mrs Clinton said on Tuesday that the US had a national interest in maintaining peace, stability and respect for international law in the region.
While the US "does not take a position on competing territorial claims", she said, "we believe the nations of the region should work collaboratively to resolve disputes without coercion, without intimidation and certainly without the use of force".
Chinese media has been lukewarm ahead of her visit.
"Though US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has said the Asia-Pacific is big enough to hold both China and the United States, Washington still need to take concrete actions to improve its ties with China," an article on state-run Xinhua news agency said.
"Moreover, Washington has been trying to work with a number of South East Asian nations to force China into a multi-national solution to territorial rows in the South China Sea, despite China's strong and perennial opposition."
Mrs Clinton's last visit to China in 2 May was overshadowed by the diplomatic crisis over the blind Chinese activist Chen Guangcheng, who fled to the US embassy.
He was later allowed to go to New York to study.