Government blames "certain countries" for cancellation of ASEAN statement

China's Defence Ministry said on Wednesday that "certain countries" outside of Southeast Asia were responsible for the cancellation of a joint statement at the end of a regional defence forum.

China expressed regret, the ministry said on an official microblog, adding that the unnamed countries had tried to force content unrelated to the conference into the joint declaration.

Tensions have risen between China and the United States over the South China Sea, a regional flashpoint where China has territorial disputes with several U.S. allies.