Pacific islands, Japan strongly oppose status quo change by force: Joint statement

Pacific island states and Japan issued a joint statement on Thursday saying they "expressed strong opposition to any unilateral attempts to change the status quo by the threat or use of force or coercion," in a veiled reference to China.

Such phrasing is often used by the United States and its allies to refer to Beijing's growing influence and military capacity in the Asia-Pacific, although Tokyo and the 18 Pacific Islands Forum members did not mention China explicitly in their statement after a three-day summit.

AFP