China harbors no imminent plans of creating an Air Defense Identification Zone over the South China Sea, the foreign ministry announced in a press release quoted by the state-owned news agency Xinhua.
Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun previously claimed that Chinese officials have finalized a draft plan for a prospective Air Defense Identification Zone to be set up over the disputed sea.
According to Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Hong Lei, the reports are baseless rumors being spread by “right-wing forces” in Japan.
“We sternly warned these forces not to mislead public opinions with rumors and play up tensions for their own selfish benefits,” he said.
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