Latest news with #ChinaClaims
Free Malaysia Today
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
Beijing slams video posted by US embassy in Singapore about South China Sea
The South China Sea is believed to contain valuable oil and gas deposits. (EPA Images pic) SINGAPORE : China slammed a video shared on social media by the US embassy in Singapore which criticises Beijing's South China Sea claims, comparing them to the actions of an inconsiderate neighbour who intrudes on others' space. The roughly 90-second video shows a government-built apartment block inundated with clutter, voiced over in a Singaporean accent. 'This happens right outside Singapore's doorstep too, in the South China Sea, where one neighbour thinks he owns basically everything,' the narrator says, as the video cuts to a series of news clippings on China's territorial disputes. The post sparked a strident reaction from China's embassy in Singapore late yesterday. On its Facebook page, the Chinese embassy said the video 'deliberately distorts the ins-and-outs of the South China Sea issue'. 'Under joint efforts of China and Asean countries, the current situation in the South China Sea remains overall stable,' it added, referring to the Association of Southeast Asian Nations bloc. The embassy said it was 'universally recognised that the US is the least qualified to even talk about international law'. Beijing claims almost the entire disputed waterway, through which more than 60% of global maritime trade passes, despite an international ruling that its assertion has no merit. The South China Sea is also believed to contain valuable oil and gas deposits, and there are concerns that Beijing is seeking to expand its reach. In Southeast Asia, Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam have partial claims to the sea. Singapore's foreign ministry said in a statement yesterday that it rejects interference by foreign embassies. 'The Singapore government rejects attempts by foreign embassies to incite domestic reactions to international issues involving third countries,' the statement said. 'Complex issues are best resolved through appropriate channels for effective diplomacy,' it said.
South China Morning Post
20-05-2025
- Politics
- South China Morning Post
Singapore's HDB corridors compared with South China Sea row? US embassy slammed over video
A US embassy video likening China's maritime claims in the South China Sea to a resident in Singapore cluttering the corridor of a public housing block has been met with ridicule by online users, with some describing it as propaganda tailored for local audiences. The 90-second clip, posted by US Chargé d'Affaires Casey Mace and reshared across the official embassy channels on Monday, opens with a scene familiar to many Singaporeans – the façade of a Housing and Development Board (HDB) flat – and a narrator intoning: 'Our homes are our sanctuaries. And when we live together, it's important to respect each other's space and our common space.' Viewers are then asked to 'imagine coming home one day and to find this', as the screen flashes images of shared areas blocked by household clutter, alongside headlines about disputes over corridor hoarding. 'A neighbour has decided that the space in front of your door is theirs,' the narrator says, before asking: 'Does this remind you of anything else?' The video then pivots to the South China Sea conflict, showing news headlines about Philippine and Vietnamese officials accusing China of aggression, military build-ups and harassment of fishermen. 'This happens right outside Singapore's doorstep, too,' the narrator says. The video notes that in 2016, a UN tribunal ruled in favour of the Philippines in a case against Beijing's sweeping claims in the South China Sea, saying China's 'nine-dash line' had no legal basis. China has consistently rejected the ruling, stating that it has historic rights over the disputed waters. The rest of the video draws out the HDB analogy, likening China's territorial claims and assertive actions in the disputed waterway to HDB residents refusing to remove their things from public areas even after town councils have ruled against them. The video ends with the narrator saying: 'It's important to remember: we all have to use this corridor. We have to live together peacefully.'
