ASEAN leaders call for South China Sea calm

SYDNEY (AFP) — Australia and its Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN)-member neighbors vowed yesterday to boost defense ties while stressing the importance of non militarization in the disputed South China Sea at a summit where the “complex” Rohingya crisis in Myanmar took center stage.

ASEAN leaders at the three-day meeting in Sydney also agreed to work more closely to tackle

the growing menace of violent extremism and radicalization.

But while a final communique noted a resolve to “protect the human rights of our peoples,” it failed to condemn member state Myanmar’s treatment of the Muslim-minority Rohingya.

Nearly 700,000 Rohingya have fled the troubled Rakhine state for Bangladesh since authorities launched a brutal crackdown six months ago that the UN has called “ethnic cleansing.”

Myanmar, whose de-facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi was in Sydney, has vehemently denied the allegations.

“We discussed the situation in Rakhine state at considerable length today,” Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said at a closing press conference.

“Aung San Suu Kyi addressed the matter comprehensively, at some considerable length herself,” he said.

“It’s a very complex problem ... Everyone seeks to end the suffering that has been occasioned by the events, the conflict.”

Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said the crisis was “a concern for all ASEAN countries, and yet ASEAN is not able to intervene to force an outcome.”

As for tensions in the South China Sea, it remains a big worry for regional leaders, as Beijing continues to build artificial islands capable of hosting military installations – much to the chagrin of other claimants to the area.

Vietnam remains the most vocal in the dispute with the Philippines backing off under China-friendly President Rodrigo Duterte. Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei also have claims.

Canberra and ASEAN reaffirmed “the importance of maintaining and promoting peace, stability, maritime safety and security, freedom of navigation and overflight in the region”, without naming Beijing.

The leaders added they wanted to see an “early conclusion of an effective code of conduct in the South China Sea”.

“We will uphold our commitment to the rules-based order and international law in the region, including the South China Sea,” stressed Turnbull.

With China flexing its muscle, they also committed to enhancing “the scope and sophistication of defense cooperation”, while expressing “grave concern” about escalating tensions on the Korean peninsula.

Southeast Asian leaders joined Turnbull in calling on North Korea to end its nuclear program and urging United Nations (UN) countries to fully implement sanctions.

Tensions between the US and North Korea have eased recently amid plans for a summit between President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, but Asian nations are still wary of any potential conflict in the region. (With a report from AP)