Countries should reach an agreement on regional security cooperation mechanisms, as the security situation in China's surrounding areas is getting increasingly complicated, said a report on international politics issued on Wednesday.

The Institute of World Economics and Politics under the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Social Sciences Academic Press issued the Annual Report on International Politics and Security 2016 in Beijing, a compilation of essays authored by the institute's researchers.

In one essay, Wang Lei, an assistant researcher, said China and its surrounding countries are enhancing their cooperation in politics and economics, while intensifying their competition in military and security issues.

"China should adapt itself more to its status and responsibility of a large country, while surrounding countries should keep adapting themselves to China's peaceful development as a large country," Wang said, suggesting various parities "reach an agreement on regional security cooperation mechanisms and regulations as soon as possible".

The South China Sea disputes are among factors that have the largest impact on the security of China's surrounding areas, but the issue is getting more controllable, said the report.

How the issue will develop "to a large extent depends on" the United States' strategies in the Asia-Pacific region, it said.

China and the United States are working to stabilize the bilateral relations by cooperating in as many fields as they are able to and preventing their differences from developing into crises, said Wang Mingming, another researcher, adding news media on both sides should play a positive role in stabilizing relations.