Southeast Asian diplomats meet with China as friction mounts over Beijing’s sweeping maritime claims

Associated Press

VIENTIANE, Laos (AP) — Top diplomats from Southeast Asia have met with China’s foreign minister for talks that come as friction escalates over Beijing’s growing effort to press its sweeping maritime claims. Several members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have territorial disputes with China, which have led to direct confrontations that many worry could lead to broader conflict. Indonesia Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said ahead of the talks in Laos on Friday with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi that “One wrong step in the South China Sea will turn a small fire into a terrible firestorm.”