China has staked its national prestige and its leadership’s nationalist credentials on this issue, which means that Xi is likely to rebuff US demands that China cease all activities seen as militarizing its new artificial islands in disputed waters. The most that can be realistically expected is an insipid statement of the two sides’ agreement to disagree.
南海纠纷也许是最棘手的外交问题。中国在这一问题上押上了国家尊严和领导人的民族主义情操，这意味着习近平可能会断然拒绝美国要求中国停止所有被视为对其在争议海域的新造人工岛进行军事化改造的行为。从现实角度，我们最多能够期待双方发表一些无关痛痒的承认分歧的声明。