Quad 'seriously concerned' about situation in South China Sea

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken (R) speaks as India's External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar (L), Japan's Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa (2nd-L) and Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong (2nd-R) listen during a joint press conference at Iikura Guest House in Tokyo on July 29, 2024

The foreign ministers of the United States, Japan, Australia and India on Monday expressed "serious concern" over the situation in the South China Sea in a veiled rebuke to Beijing.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and his counterparts in the so-called Quad grouping issued a joint statement calling for a "free and open" Pacific after talks in Tokyo.

The statement did not name China directly but referenced a series of recent confrontations between Chinese and Philippine vessels in the disputed South China Sea.

"We are seriously concerned about the situation in the East and South China Seas and reiterate our strong opposition to any unilateral actions that seek to change the status quo by force or coercion," the communique said.

"We continue to express our serious concern about the militarization of disputed features, and coercive and intimidating maneuvers in the South China Sea," it added.

The group also condemned North Korea's "destabilizing" missile launches.

Blinken is on a tour of Asia-Pacific countries aimed at reinforcing regional cooperation in the face of Beijing's growing assertiveness and its deepening ties with Russia.

The Quad talks in Tokyo, the first since September, included Japanese Foreign Minister Yoko Kamikawa, India's S. Jaishankar and Australia's top diplomat Penny Wong.

Their statement was noticeably more muted than a communique issued after talks on Sunday between Blinken, U.S....