HONG KONG – China says that remarks made earlier this week by a U.S. top official about its maritime disputes are groundless and irresponsible. East Asia envoy Daniel Russel had raised concerns about China’s assertive stance with its neighbors and questioned the legality of China’s territorial claims.

China’s claims to maritime territory in the East and South China Seas have raised tensions with its neighbors, in particular Japan and the Philippines.

This week U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for East Asia, Daniel Russel, told a Congressional hearing in Washington that China is increasingly assertive in trying to gain control over oceans in the region.

… Sam Bateman, a maritime security analyst at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore says Russel’s statements were unnecessarily provocative.
“The only way you can read them is that the U.S. is taking a position on the claims. China’s claims are not very good ipso facto the claims by other countries are better,” he said.