我还想谈一下南海问题。南海是亚太各国赖以生存发展的海上生命线。维护这片海域的和平、安宁与航行自由，中国看得比谁都重。对于南海问题，我们不应被别有用心的炒作所迷惑，而要依据事实来判断。

I would also like to say a few words about the South China Sea. The South China Sea is a maritime lifeline on which Asia-Pacific countries rely for their survival and development. No country cares more than China about peace, tranquility and freedom of navigation in these waters. On this issue, we must not be misled by ill-intentioned sensationalization; rather, we need to judge the matter on its own merits.

中国是最早发现、开发并管辖南沙群岛的国家。二战结束后，日本根据《开罗宣言》、《波茨坦公告》等一系列国际文件归还窃取的中国领土，中国依法收复被日本侵占的南沙群岛。直到上世纪70年代，国际社会包括南海沿岸国都以不同方式承认或默认南沙群岛是中国领土。之后，由于南海发现了油气，一些国家开始蚕食和侵占中国南沙岛礁，并大兴土木，修建各类设施，包括部署火炮阵地、导弹等进攻性武器。在南海问题上，中国才是最大的受害者。

China was the first country to discover, exploit and exercise jurisdiction over the Nansha Islands. After the end of World War II, Japan returned the territories it had stolen from China in accordance with a series of international documents, including the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation, and China recovered in accordance with law the Nansha Islands occupied by Japan. Up till the 1970s, the Nansha Islands had been recognized in various ways, either explicitly or by tacit agreement, as China's territory by the littoral countries of the South China Sea and the rest of the international community. It was only when oil and gas reserves were discovered in the South China Sea that some countries started to encroach upon and occupy islands and reefs of China's Nansha Islands. They conducted massive construction there, built various facilities, and even deployed artillery positions, missiles and other offensive weaponry. So when it comes to the South China Sea, the biggest victim is no other than China.

当前，中国在自己管控的南沙岛礁进行建设，不违反国际法。中国对南沙群岛及其附近海域拥有的主权是历史形成的，是拥有充分法理依据的。我们在岛礁上部署了一些必要的防御设施，这是国际法赋予中国作为主权国家的正当权利。别国无权横加干涉，说三道四。我们在岛礁上建设的大部分设施是为了保障各国依据国际法所享有的航行自由，是为了更好履行作为南海最大沿岸国应尽的责任。

China's construction activities on islands and reefs under its administration do not violate international law. China's sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters has been formed in the course of history. It is fully backed by legal evidence. We have deployed on the islands and reefs some necessary facilities of a defensive nature. This is the legitimate right China is entitled to as a sovereign state under international law. Other countries have no right to intervene arbitrarily or make unwarranted comments. Most of our facilities there are built to safeguard the freedom of navigation enjoyed by countries in accordance with international law and to enable China to better fulfill its due responsibility as the largest littoral country of the South China Sea.