US would not hesitate to join hands with others on China

The official, however, refuted reports that the United States is lining up countries against China and this is the main purpose of the Asia trip of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton beginning today.

A variety of countries including the US "have issues with certain Chinese action", the official said on condition of anonymity adding that the "US will not hesitate" to address the concerns that they have.

"We are not trying to line up a block of countries against China. We are seriously engaged with China. That is why we have the (Chinese) State visit is coming up. But we will consult with the countries on shared issues ranging from South China Sea to non-proliferation to security issues to Burma. It is in the context of our significant engagement across Asia," the official said.

"The Secretary is not going to the region because of China, she is going to the region to engage China but also to engage other countries in the region, because we have shared interest in Asia," the official said.

"Our relationship with China is complex, our relationship with China is important. I suspect other countries feel the same way. But this is not about China, this is about our broad engagement in Asia. And we will work with China when we can and we will not hesitate to take issue with China when our interests demand," the official said.