Beijing hails milestone in S. China Sea talks
SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Southeast Asia and China have agreed on a working text to continue long drawn-out negotiations over a code of conduct in the disputed South China sea, with officials on Thursday lauding it as a “milestone” and “great progress.”
Some members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China have overlapping claims to islands in the sea, one of the world’s busiest waterways. For years they have been discussing a pact to prevent an escalation of disputes.
“I am pleased to announce yet another milestone in the COC [code of conduct] process,” said Vivian Balakrishnan, the foreign minister of Singapore, who is hosting the meeting of regional leaders and lawmakers from around the world in the city-state.
He said the “single draft COC negotiating text,” agreed at high-level talks in June but only announced on Thursday, would serve as the basis for negotiations.
His Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, called the working text “good news” and “great progress.”
Critics say the consensus approach to negotiations on the code could mean a final deal is still years off and works in China’s favor as a delaying tactic to ease scrutiny of its militarization of man-made islands in the region.
Officials of the 10 nations of the ASEAN grouping also met counterparts in Russia, Japan and New Zealand.
A draft version seen by Reuters before ASEAN’s meeting with Russia said the bloc would seek to strengthen its cooperation on cybersecurity with Moscow, which the United States has accused of election meddling, by issuing a joint statement of “cooperation in the field of cybersecurity.”
The final communique released late on Thursday made no mention of this, however.
Singapore suffered its worst cyberattack this year, when hackers stole the personal information of about 1.5 million people, including Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, from a government health database. Malaysia this year said it had foiled a cyber heist of its central bank.
US intelligence agencies have said a Russian propaganda arm tried to tamper with the 2016 presidential election by posting and buying ads on Facebook. Moscow has denied involvement.
In its joint statement, ASEAN also reiterated its commitment to wrap up a major trade pact backed by China, against the backdrop of protectionist trade policies adopted by the United States, and urged progress towards peace and stability on a denuclearized Korean peninsula.
Many Southeast Asian countries have been unsure of US economic policy toward the region since President Donald Trump won a 2016 election promising to put “America First.”
One of Trump’s early acts in office was to pull out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade agreement, which involved four Southeast Asian states.
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is due in Singapore on Friday fresh from unveiling a investment pitch for the region.