Philippines implicitly blames China for delaying maritime talks

MANILA (Reuters) - The Philippines blamed a slowdown in talks on ending territorial disputes in the South China Sea on "construction" changing the ground rules, an apparent reference to China amid a growing dispute between Beijing and some of its neighbours.

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, believed to be rich in energy resources, rejecting rival claims to parts of it from Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei.