Navigation freedom in the South China Sea does not imply wanton activities, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Tuesday.

China hopes to secure freedom of navigation, Wang said at a press conference on the sidelines of the ongoing session of the National People's Congress.

However, he said, "Freedom of navigation does not imply doing whatever you want."

Thanks to joint efforts made by China and other countries in the region, the South China Sea remains among the world's safest and freest sail lanes, he said.

Any attempts to disturb the South China Sea and destabilize Asia would not be allowed by China and most other countries in the region, he said.

Wang reiterated that the Nansha Islands have been China's inherent territories and all Chinese descendants have the obligation to defend the sovereign land.

"China has never claimed and will not claim new territories," he said.

Building defense facilities on its own islands and reefs, China exercises the right of self defense entitled by the international law, he said.

China was neither the first country that arranged defense nor the one that arranged the most defense, not even the one that conducted the most military activities in the South China Sea, he said.

"Not China, but others should be accused of militarizing the sea," he said.

Besides meeting basic defense needs, China is building more facilities for civilian use, with purposes of offering public services to the international community.

"After the facilities are completed and conditions there allow, we might consider inviting the press, including from foreign country, to make a field trip," he said.

On China's efforts to promote peace and stability in the region, Wang highlighted a China-ASEAN maritime cooperation fund which has financed more than 40 projects.

China is actively advancing consultations on a code of conduct in the South China Sea and helping finalize two consensus documents, he said.

China also initiated to adopt preventive measures for maritime risks control and to set up two hotlines for maritime emergency diplomacy and joint search and rescue.

"China's initiatives, which show our sincerity, have been obstructed by a few countries and thus go with little progress," Wang said. "But China, working with ASEAN countries, has capability and confidence of maintaining the overall situation of peace and development in the South China Sea."

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