China always committed to resolving int'l disputes by peaceful negotiations: senior military official

SINGAPORE -- China is always committed to resolving international disputes through peaceful negotiations and opposed to resorting to force or threat of force, a senior Chinese military official said here on Saturday.

Addressing a plenary session of the 16th Shangri-La Dialogue which kicked off on Friday, Lt. Gen. He Lei, vice president of the Academy of Military Science of the Chinese People's Liberation Army, said China has always held that countries, big or small, are all equal, and issues should be settled equitably through consultation on the basis of equality.

"China has always worked to maintain, build and contribute to international and regional peace and has firmly followed the path of peaceful development although it is faced with multiple security challenges," He said.

China has strived to develop and improve friendly and cooperative relations with other countries in the Asia-Pacific, with China-U.S. relations forging ahead positively and steadily, China-Russia comprehensive strategic partnership of coordination progressing at a high level and China-India strategic cooperative partnership deepening, the senior Chinese military official noted.

"In the spirit of regarding history as a mirror and looking forward into the future, China has been devoted to the continuous improvement and forward movement of China-Japan relations," he said.

China has actively advocated new thoughts on settling complex hotspot issues in the region, He said.

"On the South China Sea issue, China puts forward and supports a 'dual-track approach,' namely peacefully resolving disputes through negotiation and consultation by countries directly concerned and jointly upholding peace and stability in this region by China and ASEAN countries."

"On the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula, China has proposed a 'suspension-for-suspension' initiative, namely the suspension of Democratic People's Republic of Korea's nuclear and missile tests and the suspension of large-scale joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea, as well as a 'dual-track' mechanism, which is aimed to advance and achieve the two tracks of denuclearization and building a peace mechanism on the Korean Peninsula."

He said the Chinese military has committed itself to doing its utmost to shoulder more international responsibilities and obligations.

The three-day dialogue organized by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies gathered senior military officials, diplomats and experts from over 30 countries.