China will not back down on sovereignty issues, despite encountering criticism for its establishment of Sansha city in the South China Sea from the US, Vietnam and the Phillipines, analysts said on Wednesday.

Ruan Zongze, vice president of the China Institute of International Studies, told the Global Times on Wednesday that it’s inappropriate for the US to criticize China on the establishment of the city, because what China has done is reasonable and is a logical move given the nature of Asian politics.

US State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said at a news briefing on Tuesday that the country remains concerned regarding “unilateral moves of this kind,” AP reported.

US Senator John McCain warned Tuesday that China was “unnecessarily provocative” in saying it would establish a military garrison on disputed South China Sea islands, and called for a multilateral solution to the dispute, according to AFP.

McCain said other actions by China, including the appointment of legislators to govern such disputes “only reinforces why many Asian countries are increasingly concerned about China’s expansive territorial claims and the possibility that China will attempt to impose those claims through intimidation and coercion.”

“The US should reflect on its diplomatic interference in the region which has sent inaccurate signals to neighboring countries. The recent statements from the US on the Diaoyu Islands have broken their promise to take no position on competing sovereignty claims and it will lead to damage to Sino-US relations,” Ruan said.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was reported to say on Tuesday that the Diaoyu Islands will be included in a bilateral security treaty between the US and Japan.

Ji Qiufeng, a professor at the School of International Relations at Nanjing University, told the Global Times that it’s clear that the US is using these statements to galvanize countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines, but China can ignore these statements since they are groundless.

“Establishing Sansha City is a domestic affair of China which shouldn’t be interfered with by any other countries. The US has no reason or grounds to protest through diplomatic channels, which explains why the country has only released a statement,” Ji said, adding there’s no need to worry that the establishment of the city will lead to military interference by the US.

Vietnam and the Philippines on Tuesday also joined forces to lash out at China’s moves to establish a military garrison and a city in the South China Sea.

The Philippines said it does not recognize the city or its jurisdiction, and Vietnam said China’s actions violated international law, AP reported.

Su Hao, director of the Asia-Pacific Research Center at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times that the establishment of Sansha city has shown that China will not back down when the matters concern sovereignty or compromise their principles, regardless of whether the issue is the South China Sea or the Diaoyu Islands.

Since the disputes over the South China Sea have intensified, it is time for China to show its confidence in its ability to protect its own rights and sovereignty, Ji added.

Xiao Jie, the new mayor of Sansha, said on Tuesday that strengthening law enforcement capability and protecting Chinese fishermen’s safety on the sea would be a priority, according to Guangzhou Daily.

The newspaper also quoted an anonymous official as saying that a fleet of about 20 law enforcement ships could be built at the Xisha Islands, which will also cover Zhongsha and Nansha islands.

By Liu Linlin