Asean ministers ended a major regional security forum on Thursday having
failed to agree on a code of conduct that would help reduce tension in the
South China Sea.
The overlapping claims to the
resources and waterways of the sea by China and a number of Asean states was
one of a number of security issues that ministers dealt with.
But Indonesia’s foreign minister,
Marty Natalegawa, said failure to reach agreement on the code was “extremely
disappointing.” Asean Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan also echoed a similiar
position.
“This time it’s a hiccup within
the Asean group,” he said. “We could not find a common position on just one
issue. The rest is OK.”
Asean countries had hoped to
solidify a code of conduct that would then be negotiated with China. The
declaration would not solve the overlapping claims issue but would outline
protocols for ships’ behavior within the area.
Kao Kim Hourn, secretary of state
for the Cambodian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said all countries were
committed to a “peaceful settlement of the dispute.”
“All the parties involved should
be discussing this issue more,” he said. “But at the same time, they believe
that what has been happening will affect regional peace, stability and
security.”
Thursday’s meeting was attended
by top diplomats from across Asia. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
attended as well, claiming the US would not take sides in the South China Sea
issue but wanted peace and stability there.
Chheang Vannarith, executive director
for the Cambodian Institute for Cooperation and Peace, said the US has
interests in preventing conflict in the South China Sea, which has seen some
tension in recent months.
The dispute can be hard to manage
for Cambodia, which holds the rotating presidency of Asean this year, as some
members of Asean are deeply involved and others aren’t, he said.
A code of conduct between the
claimant states could prevent conflict for now, he said, but it won’t resolve
the underlying issue. “If they use this tool to [try to] solve sea borders and
sovereignty, it’s impossible,” he said.
Independent political analyst Lao
Monghay said that regardless of the outcome of the code of conduct, the
experience for Cambodia as a broker between China and Asean has been beneficial.
Still, solving the disputes over
the sea will be hard, he said. That’s because China does not have an interest
in settling them through international law.
“If problems are solved through
international law, China will lose,” he said.
China’s argument is historical,
and their stance is firm, he said.
China has proven reluctant to
sign onto the code of conduct, and prefers to negotiate bilaterally, where it
has the most power, analysts say.
Meanwhile, China has built strong
relationships across the region, in countries like Cambodia, which could divide
Asean countries.
That will now come against
increased US engagement, Lao Monghay said, including direct aid in health,
education and other fields beyond the current aid, mainly to the military.
Aside from the South China Sea
issue, Asean ministers also sought to tackle the issues of the Korean peninsula
and sanctions on Burma, an Asean member state.
Kong Sothanarith, VOA Khmer
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