Dai Bingguo delivers a speech at the dialogue on the South China Sea between Chinese and U.S. think tanks in Washington, D.C. on July 5 (DING YING)

Chinese and U.S. scholars conducted a thorough dialogue on the South China Sea on July 5 in Washington D. C., urging all involved parties to cool down the situation through a practical approach. 

The dialogue, a special but timely communication on the South China Sea between Chinese and U.S. think tanks, is co-hosted by Renmin University of China's Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies (RDCY) and Washington-based Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. 

Former Chinese top diplomat Dai Bingguo delivered a speech, claiming China will not accept the illegal award of the Manila-initiated arbitration over the South China Sea, but will stick to peaceful resolution of disputes.   

The so-called arbitration award, scheduled to be announced on July 12, "amounts to nothing more than a piece of paper," Dai, former State Councilor and honorary President of the Institute of International and Strategic Studies at Peking University in his speech.  

He iterated that the Nansha Islands are China's integral territory; China remains committed to peaceful resolution of disputes in the South China Sea through negotiations and consultations with countries directly concerned; and the situation in the South China Sea must cool down.  

Wang Wen, RDCY Executive Dean, pointed out that the development of the South China Sea situation has gone too far beyond all sides' imagination. "This should not be a zero-sum game," he stressed. Wang said that the U.S. side should keep impartial and neutral instead of choosing a side to prevent an antagonistic situation between the two major countries on the planet. China and the United States need to boost cooperation in other fields to defuse current excessive concerns on the South China Sea, he suggested.  

Roger Baker, Vice President of Washington-based Geopolitical Analysis, expressed similar viewpoints. He said besides high-level exchanges, the two countries can promote communication between lower levels. For example, discussions between their navies will be helpful to keep the situation under control.

(Reporting from Washington, D.C.)