China paper warns of "sound of cannons" in sea disputes

China, Taiwan and four Southeast Asian states, including the Philippines and Vietnam, have conflicting claims over the Spratly Islands and other atolls in the South China Sea, an area believed to have rich deposits of oil and gas. It is also a rich fishing ground.
One of China's most popular newspapers warned on Tuesday that nations involved in territorial disputes in the South China Sea should "mentally prepare for the sounds of cannons" if they remain at loggerheads with Beijing.

The Global Times is published by Communist Party mouthpiece the People's Daily, but unlike that newspaper it is not a platform for official policy and tends to take a stridently nationalist tone which pleases it readers.

In a editorial published in its Chinese and English editions, the tabloid-sized Global Times accused countries such as Vietnam and the Philippines of taking advantage of China's "mild diplomatic stance" to push their own agendas.

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