U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, on Tuesday called for the rule of law and dialogue to resolve territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
Kerry, who spoke at the East Asia summit in Vientiane (Laos), posited that the U.S. remained neutral in the dispute but called on all parties to follow the rule of law.
According to Kerry, the U.S. government absolutely supports the legal process and diplomacy for the resolution of the matter.
China had dismissed a July 12 ruling by an international arbitration panel in The Hague, initiated by the Philippines, which invalidated China’s claims to most part of the South China Sea.
Kerry advised the Filipino President, Rodrigo Duterte, to engage in dialogue and negotiations with China in order to resolve all disputes.