Chinese Communist party mouthpiece Global Times dismissed the summit as an "outcome of realpolitik," saying Washington will dare not say the summit is anti-China and that many ASEAN leaders are attending it as a matter of 'diplomatic balance'.
"The Americans are talking up this summit, with some media even calling for a "Sunnylands Principle," which exaggerates the importance of the meeting," Global Times said.
Daniel Russel, the US Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs, had said the Summit "is not about China ... is not anti-China. It's about the US and ASEAN."
But Global Times said this narrative of common ground is just "another piece of rhetoric" used by the US to hide its intention of countering China.
At the summit, the US has brought to the table the security situation in the South China Sea, China's building of air strips on reclaimed lands in the disputed waters, the north Korean missile and nuclear tests and the rising threat from Isis militant group, as well as the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement.
But China believes that barring the Philippines, the whole of the ASEAN bloc would never go as far as to call for a united stand against China over the South China Sea dispute.
"ASEAN members that dispute China's claims, such as the Philippines and Vietnam, may want US guarantees about their interests in the region, but other nations do not want to follow US orders and risk their diplomatic and economic ties with China," Global Times said.
It says even Vietnam will cringe away from a tough anti-China stance. "Even Vietnam, which has territorial disputes with China, has taken a cautious approach in walking a fine line between Beijing and Washington."
Beijing believes that its exclusion from the TPP is meant to create a US-led economic sphere of influence in the region.
"The Obama administration is trying to promote TPP within ASEAN by the chance of the meeting for the purpose of consolidating its dominance in regional economic development. Washington doesn't want Beijing to be another rule-maker, but a follower."
