China ‘ready to work’ on sea code
Credit to Author: GLEE JALEA| Date: Sun, 03 Nov 2019 16:27:45 +0000
BANGKOK: Beijing said on Sunday that it is “ready to work” with Southeast Asian nations on a code of conduct in the South China (West Philippine) Sea, where it is accused of bullying fellow claimants and building up military installations.
China claims most of the resource-rich waterway, a major global shipping route and long a source of tension among claimants in Southeast Asia.
The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) has been locked in talks for a code of conduct for the sea, where China is accused of deploying warships, arming outposts and ramming fishing vessels.
The agreement, set to be finished in 2021, will set out conduct guidelines for the sea along with conflict resolution parameters.
On Sunday, China’s premier Li Keqiang said the first reading of the document — a chance for all members to comment on the draft terms — was “a very important landmark.”
“We stand ready to work with Asean countries building on the existing foundation and the basis to strive for new progress” on the guidelines, he said.
He added that China wanted to “maintain and uphold long-term peace and stability in the South China Sea.”
Tensions have flared in recent weeks between China and Vietnam, one of Beijing’s most vocal critics in the sea.
Hanoi hit back at China after it sent a survey ship into waters inside its Exclusive economic zone and around islands claimed by both Hanoi and Beijing.
The ship left after several weeks in the area.
The Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei also have overlapping claims with China in the sea.
The US has accused China of bullying in the sea, and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said last week America had been too easy on China.
“We hesitated and did far less than we should have,” he said, referring to China’s disputes with Vietnam and the Philippines in the sea.
Don’t take sides
Also on Sunday, President Rodrigo Duterte urged Asean leaders not to take sides on the sea dispute, Malacañang said.
It said Duterte called on Asean leaders not to commit “a strategic mistake committed by the past leaderships” of the Philippines by choosing sides.
The Palace said the President stressed that the sea row, which falls under the issue of geopolitical transformation, was a “strategic importance” to Asean.
“President Duterte articulated the firm stance of the Philippines on the issue, that is, the same must be resolved peacefully in accordance with international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea,” Presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo said in a statement.
“The Palace foresees the President to continue elaborating the position of our country in relation to important matters to Asean and discussing matters that are beneficial not just to the Filipino people, but to the citizens of our neighbor countries in Asean for the remainder of this trip,” Panelo noted.
“As Asean-China Country Coordinator, the Philippines, under [President Rodrigo Duterte], vowed to do its utmost best to conclude the negotiations on the Code of Conduct — one that is effective and substantive — at the soonest possible time,” he added.
Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping earlier agreed to fast-track the negotiations on the code of conduct in the South China Sea at the soonest possible time to prevent tensions in the disputed areas.