Summit to urge ‘self-restraint’ in West Philippine Sea dispute

KUALA LUMPUR—A Southeast Asian summit will urge “self-restraint” in the South China Sea but avoid directly criticizing Chinese actions that have fanned tensions in the contested waters, a diplomatic source with knowledge of a draft statement said on Friday.

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) gather in Malaysia on Monday for an annual meeting expected to include discussion of efforts under way by China to create islands on fragile coral reefs whose ownership is disputed.

The land reclamation has outraged the Philippines and added to regional concerns over Beijing’s assertion of sovereignty over virtually the entire South China Sea.

The draft statement will stress the need for “exercizing self-restraint in the conduct of activities, not to resort to threat or use of force, and for the parties concerned to resolve their disputes/differences through peaceful means,” the diplomatic source told Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Code of conduct

It also called for discussions with Beijing on a binding code of conduct governing behavior in the South China Sea “to be intensified, to ensure the expedition of the establishment of an effective [code of conduct],” the source said.

Asean has pushed China for more than a decade to agree on a code of conduct in the disputed waters.

The code is expected to build on a nonbinding 2002 pledge by countries with competing claims to the waters to respect freedom of navigation, resolve disputes peacefully and refrain from inflaming the situation.

Asean concern

The Philippines has expressed hopes the meeting in Malaysia will result in a strong expression of Asean concern.

The draft statement could change based on discussions between leaders.

Beijing is widely believed to be dragging its feet on binding rules that could impede its freedom of action at sea.

Satellite photos emerged this month showing a flotilla of Chinese vessels dredging sand onto Panganiban Reef (Mischief Reef), which is claimed by Manila.

The activities there and at other locations raise the specter of a more permanent Chinese military and maritime presence far out into the South China Sea, from which it can project its growing might.

Asean members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei, as well as nonmember Taiwan, also have overlapping claims in the area.

The draft statement also calls for parties to abide by the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (Unclos), a reference that could anger Beijing.

The Philippines in 2013 filed a formal plea under Unclos challenging China’s expansive claims.

China has refused to recognize the case, which is pending.

In an interview with AFP last week, President Aquino said China’s activities “should engender fear for the rest of the world” and could threaten freedom of navigation.

China has hit back at all criticism, saying it was free to do as it pleased in waters it considers its own.

Asean has a history of treading carefully with China on the South China Sea due to Beijing’s immense trade and diplomatic leverage over individual members—and because not all 10 member-states have maritime claims. AFP