ASEAN, China to agree to complete Code of Conduct consultations
VIENTIANE (PNA/Kyodo/ANTARA News) – Leaders of the 10-member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and their Chinese counterpart are expected to agree to concluding consultations on the outline of a legally binding code of conduct (COC) in the South China Sea in the first half of next year, a draft statement said ahead of the meeting.
According to the draft chairman’s statement, seen by Kyodo News, ASEAN leaders are expected to “welcome” China’s vision of completing “the implementation of the code of conduct’s early harvest measures by the end of 2016” and “consultation on the COC outline in the first half of 2017 under
circumstances without disturbances and to fast-track COC consultation.”
The statement will be issued at the end of the summit between ASEAN and China on Wednesday, a meeting that will also commemorate the 25th anniversary of dialogue relations between the two sides.
The draft reiterated the importance of the full implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, signed by China and ASEAN in 2002, and the early conclusion of ongoing talks on the framework of the COC.
“We underlined the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security, and freedom of navigation in, and overflight above, the South China Sea,” the draft said.
The South China Sea has seen tensions rise in recent months and years between China and a number of other countries which claim parts of the sea.
China has proceeded with an aggressive program of land reclamation on disputed islands and reefs in the sea, on which it has also been building military facilities.
Discussions on the COC between China and ASEAN – four of whose member states are claimants to parts of the South China Sea – have been taking place for over a decade, with little to no progress in creating concrete results on the biding set of rules.
ASEAN and China also plan to show progress in their cooperation by issuing official guidelines for hot-line communications between senior Chinese and ASEAN officials.
A separate joint statement on the application of the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea in the South China Sea will also be adopted during a sideline meeting between ASEAN and China, with the aim of ensuring maritime safety in the disputed sea.
The Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague issued a ruling on July 12, invalidating China’s “nine-dash line,” through which Beijing claims almost all of the South China Sea.
The Philippines filed the arbitration case against China in January, 2013, to seek clarification of its maritime entitlements in the South China Sea under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), following China’s aggressive assertion of its claims there. Both the Philippines and China are signatories to the convention.
Three other ASEAN member states – Malaysia, Vietnam, and Brunei – and Taiwan also have overlapping claims in the South China Sea.
In another part of the statement, both sides will stress the intensification of negotiations on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, Asia’s most ambitious trade agreement.
“Noting the immense potential of the RCEP to foster global and regional trade and growth, we urged our experts to redouble efforts toward achieving a modern, comprehensive, high-quality and mutually beneficial economic partnership agreement,” the draft statement said.
RCEP leaders from 16 countries – the 10 ASEAN states and its six dialogue partners – will adopt a statement on the RCEP negotiations at a ceremony after the East Asia Summit, which they will attend on Thursday.
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Support for war on drugs
Meanwhile, Indonesia called on ASEAN countries to cooperate in tackling drug trafficking.
Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Wiranto, speaking at the meeting of the 14th ASEAN Political and Security Council in Vientiane, Laos, on Tuesday, gave a clarion call to ASEAN countries to join hands to respond to the problem of illicit drug trafficking.
“Indonesia, like many other countries in ASEAN, is increasingly facing the problem of illicit drug trafficking by sea. We must strengthen our joint efforts in responding to this problem,” Wiranto said in a written statement received by ANTARA on Tuesday.
In a forum attended by ministers from 10 ASEAN member countries, Wiranto reported the successful launch of ASEAN Seaport Interdiction Task Force (ASITF) in July, which will eventually lead to the formation of ASITF Focal Points to combat drug-related crimes.
ASITF is a forum that reflects the commitment of ASEAN countries to eradicate drugs. Its purpose is to act as a platform for law enforcement officials to collaborate, coordinate and take initiative to prohibit illicit drug trafficking through checkpoints at international ports in the ASEAN region.
“The extent of drug trafficking in Indonesia is increasingly a matter of worrying. Though it is not an easy task, the new body should be able to free the ASEAN countries of the problem of drug trafficking,” Minister Wiranto observed.
In addition to drug eradication efforts, Wiranto also invited the ministers of friendly countries to jointly safeguard the territorial waters of Southeast Asia.
Joint security is needed considering the number of cases of robbery and kidnapping in Sulu Sea, the southern Philippines.
“We are very concerned about the threat to maritime security as reflected in the increasing number of sea robberies, incidents of hijacking and kidnapping in Sulu Sea,” Wiranto argued.
In addition, Indonesia urged ASEAN countries for more commitment in combating illegal fishing, happening across its waters.
“As the largest maritime ASEAN member country with extensive maritime potential, Indonesia will continue to enforce the law against illegal fishing to ensure the sustainability of our marine resources,” he emphasized.