CHINA - China has pledged to work with the Association of Southeast Asian
Nations toward a code of conduct for the South China Sea on the basis of
consensus, Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said at the conclusion of his visit to
Southeast Asia on Monday.
The five-day visit took in
Indonesia and two of the four countries that have competing claims with China
in the South China Sea - Malaysia and Brunei.
The visit came only weeks after
an ASEAN ministerial meeting in Phnom Penh during which the Philippines
inflamed tensions over the issue.
Yang's visit further emphasizes
China's stance of cooperation and peaceful resolution on the South China Sea
issue, and will soften tensions in the region, analysts said.
Solving disputes through direct
talks between related parties is an important principle and is something that
is agreed on by all signatories of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in
the South China Sea, Yang told Xinhua News Agency.
Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei
all agreed on this principle during the visit, he said.
"China's sovereignty over
Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters is based on solid and abundant
historical and legal basis," said Yang. He said China's "opposition
to the internalization and regionalization of the issues in the South China Sea
is because it wishes to defend the consensus and the effectiveness of the DOC
and maintain peace and stability in the region".
The difficult issue of the South China
Sea requires countries in the region, ASEAN and China to work together closely,
Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said on Friday.
"I'm very much assured that
our diplomacy is very much on track," Natalegawa said.
But recent actions by Manila and
Hanoi have increased tensions in the region. Manila suggested the new code of
conduct be a mechanism to solve territorial disputes, while Beijing believes it
should be closer to the DOC signed in 2002 to deepen cooperation and reduce
differences.
After the Phnom Penh meeting
failed to produce a joint communique on the issue, diplomatic efforts made by
Natalegawa eventually pushed the 10 ASEAN countries to release a six-point
statement on the South China Sea in line with the DOC.
Malaysian Foreign Minister Datuk
Seri Anifah Aman on Sunday urged Southeast Asian countries to settle their
overlapping claims in the South China Sea before bringing them up with Beijing,
saying both China and ASEAN are genuine in trying to find a peaceful solution
to the dispute.
Yang's visit to the three
countries will put pressure on Manila and Hanoi to begin to seriously address
the DOC and return to talks with Beijing, said Gong Yingchun, an international
law expert with China Foreign Affairs University.
"Curiously, the diplomatic
blitz does not include stopovers in Hanoi and Manila, which Beijing has accused
of challenging its sovereignty over the South China Sea islands," Manila
Standard Today newspaper said on Friday.
"China doesn't skip the two
countries on purpose or close the door of communication with them. On the
contrary, China always remains open to direct talks with them to solve
problems," said Zhang Jiuhuan, China's former ambassador to Thailand and
Singapore.
"Some countries'
provocations have resulted in risks to regional stability, and ASEAN countries
would not take sides over the territorial issue but want closer strategic ties
with China amid the global economic recession," he said.
A number of bilateral agreements
on trade, infrastructure construction, education and culture were signed during
Yang's visit.
In other territorial
negotiations, China made a breakthrough in 28-year long bilateral boundary
talks with Bhutan on Friday, the Foreign Ministry said on Sunday.
China would like to continue cooperation
and negotiations with Bhutan to find a fair solution accepted by both sides,
Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs Fu Ying told the 20th round of boundary talks
in Bhutan.
The two countries have not yet
established diplomatic ties. The boundary talks are based on the Four Guiding
Principles agreed to by both sides in the 1998 agreement to maintain peace and
tranquillity along the border.
Zhao Shengnan
China Daily/Asia News Network
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