Ladies and gentlemen, comrades and friends,

The South China Sea is an important space for social development of surrounding countries. Its peace and stability are closely related with the development and prosperity of these countries. The Chinese government always upholds the principle of “shelving differences and seeking joint exploitation on the basis of acknowledging China’s sovereignty”, and advocates handling disputes via negotiation, controlling disputes with rule mechanism, and achieving win-win results through mutually beneficial cooperation. Particularly, in recent years, Xi Jinping, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, Chinese President, and Chairman of Central Military Commission, introduced a new security concept that emphasizes joint and comprehensive measures and cooperation in ensuring sustainable security, and adheres to a good-neighbor policy that advocates building relations with neighboring countries based on friendship, good faith, mutual benefit, and inclusiveness. China has maintained the peace and stability in the South China Sea with utmost sincerity. The construction in recent years on islands and reefs of the Nansha Islands is legitimate and justifiable as it is on China’s own territory. Apart from necessary defense facilities, the construction is more for civilian purpose to provide better public service products for the international community, including the surrounding countries, and to better fulfill the international commitment and obligations in maritime search and rescue, oceanic scientific research, weather report, environment protection, navigation safety, etc.

Navy is an important force in maintaining maritime security, protecting trade, responding to disasters at sea, and promoting exchanges and cooperation. The PLA Navy, in an open and cooperative manner, strengthens communication and exchanges with its counterparts and contributes continuous effort in enhancing strategic confidence and promoting friendship and cooperation by increasing high-level visits, port calls, joint patrol, joint exercises and training, and personnel exchange. The PLA Navy has been actively fulfilling China’s obligations and responsibilities. We have demonstrated our commitment in maintaining maritime security and fulfilling international obligations in counter-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden and HADR actions, such as the search for the missing airliner MH370 of Malaysia, the emergency supply of fresh water for Maldives, the disaster relief in Philippines after the typhoon, the escort of vessels carrying chemical weapons out of Syria, the evacuation of overseas Chinese from Libya and Yemen, and medical service abroad. Advocating setting up rule mechanisms, the PLA Navy established a combined patrol mechanism in the Beibu Gulf with the Vietnamese Navy under the framework of consultation on the demarcation of Beibu Gulf, and played an active role in the endorsement of CUES at WPNS, providing Chinese wisdom in managing crisis and handling disputes at sea.

In order to ensure the peaceful development of countries surrounding the South China Sea, and give full play to the role of the navy, on the 70th anniversary of China’s recovery of the Xisha and Nansha Islands, I would like to give 4 proposals:

First, respecting history is the prerequisite to maintaining peace and stability and settling disagreement and disputes. To respect history, we must restore the historical facts, clarify the causes, and tell right from wrong. To respect history, we must uphold justice, observe the postwar order, and avoid repeating the disaster of war. To respect history, we must base on history, draw lessons from history, and find out solution to problems through consultation and negotiation, and maintain regional peace and stability.

Second, maintaining stability is the key to follow historical trends and boost regional prosperity. If any turbulence or war occurs in the South China Sea, the neighboring countries will be the victims who will suffer the most. We must insist on dialogues and consultations, and resolve conflicts and disputes through dialogue between countries directly involved. The peace and stability should be maintained with joint efforts of China and countries in the South China Sea. We strongly oppose any country out of the region to interfere in the issue of South China Sea, so as to prevent conflicts and disputes from becoming complicated, escalated, or internationalized. We must continue to control risks, improve and upgrade security rules and consultation mechanisms, execute CUES effectively, strongly oppose unprofessional and unsafe behaviors in the air and at sea, and avoid misunderstanding and misjudgment as well as accidental conflict. National sovereignty must be respected and the territorial sovereignty of littoral states is inviolable. We strongly oppose provoking and infringing upon the sovereign security of other countries and undermining the peace and stability of the South China Sea on the pretext of “freedom of navigation and over-flight”.

Third, enhancing mutual trust is the foundation to develop friendly relations and realize harmonious coexistence. To upgrade mutual trust, we should conduct frequent high-level visits, and promote continuously the confidence and consensus between naval leaders. To improve mutual trust, we should also enhance dialogues and consultations, establish exchange mechanism between naval strategic policy departments, solve maritime hot issues through thorough study, and explore measures of crisis management and security cooperation. To consolidate basis for mutual trust, we should strengthen contacts among officers and sailors, actively conduct reciprocal ship visits and exchange between frontline forces, and deepen understanding and friendship through interaction.

Fourth, deepening cooperation is an important way to achieve mutual benefit, win-win results, and common prosperity. We should strengthen security cooperation, enhance intelligence and information exchange and sharing, and jointly fight against piracy and maritime terrorism in order to maintain a good regional maritime order and security of the strategic line of communication. We should also strengthen joint exercises and training, expand the content and fields, and inovate means and measures, in order to upgrade joint maritime operations. We should strengthen professional exchange, and expand cooperation in submarine rescue, hydrographic survey, hydrometeorology, and military medicine, etc. We should establish a perfect emergency response mechanism for maritime search and rescue and disaster relief in order to improve our capability to cope with non-traditional security threat.

Ladies and gentlemen, comrades and friends:

Precisely grasping the domestic and international situation and following the cooperative trends in regional and world development, President Xi Jinping proposed creatively the Belt and Road Initiative, which meets the needs of countries and regions along the route and is widely recognized and supported by countries in the world including those in the South China Sea. The history is the best textbook and the best revelation. Let’s keep in mind this solemn historic moment when China recovered Xisha and Nansha Islands 70 years ago, seize the day and forge ahead, seek common development, and make progress together in order to build the South China Sea into a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation.