After the ASEAN-China meeting, a senior official from one ASEAN member state told Nikkei Asia, Wang "said that it's not good that a third party is involving itself in the disputes."
"The jab was aimed not just at the U.S. but also Japan, South Korea, and the European Union. The South China Sea is their lifeline, too," the official said.
Wang is in Laos to attend the ASEAN foreign ministers meeting, a summit that could see him rubbing elbows with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who will also make a brief stop in the Laotian capital for a regional forum on Saturday, a rare international platform attended by officials from North Korea, Russia, South Korea and the European Union.
Chinese diplomats often voice irritation over outsiders' involvement in its maritime dispute with Manila. A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Tokyo last month told reporters that Japan has "no right to intervene" in the matter, days after Japan's Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying the maritime issue is "directly related to the peace and stability of the region, and is a legitimate concern of the international community."
Wang's statement at the meeting came after China and the Philippines earlier this month reached an agreement to ease maritime tensions and separately agreed to open a hotline between their presidents to improve communications. The move highlights Beijing's annoyance with what it sees as outside interference, and its preference to handle the dispute bilaterally with the Philippines.
The ASEAN country official also said that during the ASEAN-China meeting on Friday, China issued statements affirming their commitment to the peaceful settlement of maritime disputes.
Manila, for its part, has moved closer to Washington since Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. was elected in 2022. His predecessor, Rodrigo Duterte, was aligned more with Beijing. The Philippines recently signed a historic troop access deal with Japan, and will hold a defense and foreign ministers meeting with the U.S. on Tuesday.