"Josh, China says that what it is doing in the South China Sea is just like what the United States has done with its military in Hawaii. What’s the White House’s response to that?
"MR EARNEST: Our response to this is actually quite direct. There is no other country that has a claim on Hawaii. But yet when you consider the land features in the South China Sea, there are a variety of overlapping territorial claims that a variety of countries have made on those features.
"And I recognize that the Chinese government may have a disagreement about the claims that are made by other countries. That's all the more reason that we believe that all of the parties should resolve their differences of opinion about this matter in a way that doesn't provoke a military confrontation.
"That is why we have urged all parties who are claimants to these features -- the United States is not among them, but we’ve encouraged all of the countries that do have claims to resolve them in a peaceful, legal manner, and to avoid confrontation and to seek to avoid escalating the tensions in that area of the world.
"The stakes for the United States are not insignificant. Again, we don't make claims on the features, but we certainly do want to ensure that the freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce in the South China Sea is protected. There’s a lot of commerce that flows through that part of the world, and it has a significant impact on the United States if that commerce is somehow disrupted. So that's why we're seeking to reduce tensions and encouraging all sides to come together to resolve their differences in a way that does not provoke a military confrontation.