TENSIONS

China Protests State Dept.’s Remarks

Over disputed South China Sea.

Don’t be so touchy. China called a top U.S. diplomat to task over remarks made about the country’s military presence on the South China Sea, one of the region’s hotspots. The Asian country’s foreign ministry said it wished to express “strong dissatisfaction” over the remarks. On Friday the U.S. State Department said it was keeping a weather eye on the region, and that China’s move to ramp up its military presence in the area is “counter to collaborative diplomatic efforts to resolve differences and further escalating tensions in the region.” But now it seems that merely mentioning that an action may raise tensions is itself enough to put some countries through the roof.