MANILA – In last year’s Summit of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) held in Laos, the leaders in attendance expressed concern about the situation prevailing in the South China Sea, marked by tension between China with its aggressive island-building activities at isles being disputed by various claimant states.
The member states with territorial claims were concerned about the escalation of land reclamations by China, “which have eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine the peace, security and stability in the region.”
This drove various moves to promote the institutionalization of a code of conduct by the claimant parties in the territorial row.
But, based on the statement that’s being drafted this year, a copy of which was obtained by News5, it seems that the mood this year has softened somewhat, shifting toward freedom of navigation over the disputed territories, and affirming “the importance of enhancing mutual trust and confidence, exercising self-restraint in the conduct of activities, avoiding actions that may further complicate the situation, and pursuing peaceful resolution of disputes, including through full respect for legal and diplomatic processes, without resorting to the threat of the use of force, in accordance with the universally recognized principles of international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS.”
Former Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert Del Rosario believes the tone is soft this year: “The purpose of our cooperation should go beyond maintaining friendly ties. We must also cooperate to ensure that we live in a neighborhood where countries follow the rules.”
The foreign policy analyst, Prof. Richard Heydarian said he was “not completely impressedV by a tenor that says “in the interest of regional politics I’m just setting aside” the United Nations arbitral ruling.
The UN Permanent Court of Arbitration had ruled in favor of the Philippines on the matter of its exclusive economic zones, concluding, among others, that “there was no legal basis for China to claim historic rights to resources within the sea areas falling within the ‘nine dash line’.
“I think behind the scenes, he [President Rodrigo Duterte] can tell the Chinese very openly that ‘any moment I can bring it out and mention it as the Chairman of ASEAN unless you give me concessions on the ground.’”
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