China hopes the Republic of Korea (ROK) and the United States (U.S.) remain committed to maintaining peace and stability in the relevant region, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Ma Zhaoxu said Tuesday.

Ma made the remark responding to a question on the cancellation of a joint naval exercise in the Yellow Sea by the ROK and the U.S., originally scheduled for later this month, at a regular press conference.

Ma said China had noted reports concerning the matter and hoped the "concerned parties" could remain committed to regional peace and stability.

The ROK and the United States had planned to stage the exercise involving the U.S. aircraft carrier, USS George Washington, in response to the alleged sinking of a ROK warship that killed 46 sailors by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) in March.

However, Seoul's state-run broadcaster KBS had reported that a high-level government official said the exercise was unlikely to take place this year, and both sides would hold no large-scale joint drills for the time being.

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