China will not seek hegemony: Xi Jinping

Chinese President Xi Jinping has vowed that no violations of territorial integrity will be tolerated and says no nation should be allowed to monopolize global affairs.
Watchers say his comments can be seen as a thinly veiled attack on the United States.
Kim Min-ji reports.
Chinese President Xi Jinping has stressed that the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a nation should be respected.
His comments came during an event marking the 60th anniversary of a mutual peace agreement between China, Myanmar and India.
The 1954 agreement called for mutually respecting sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as mutual non-aggression and non-interference in domestic affairs.


"Sovereignty and territorial integrity should not be infringed upon. This is a basic principle that should not be ignored."

The comments come as China is locked in territorial disputes with neighboring countries, such as Japan, the Philippines and Vietnam.
In a national meeting late last week, the leader said China should not forget its humiliating past as a victim of foreign aggression and called for stronger border defense.
It was seen to target Tokyo in particular,... which has been at odds with Beijing over territorial as well as historical disputes.
He also stressed that China will not seek hegemony no matter how strong it becomes.


"China does not acknowledge the notion that a country will seek hegemony when it grows in strength. Hegemony or militarism is not the genes of China."

The Chinese leader also said the right of a country to choose its own social system and path of development should be respected.
That remark was seemingly his way of telling the West to keep out of China's domestic affairs.
The Chinese president, however, did not mention North Korea's nuclear weapons or the Korean Peninsula during his speech.
Kim Min-ji, Arirang News.