Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on Wednesday said the members of
the Association of Southeast Asian Nations would continue to enjoy “freedom of navigation” in
the South China Sea despite the still unresolved conflict between China and
some Asean members.
Speaking in a joint press
conference with United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Yang said the
South China Sea was “really a lifeline for exchanges in trade and commerce”
between China and its neighboring countries.
“Freedom and safety of navigation
in the South China Sea is assured,” Yang said.
Freedom of navigation was one of
the issues raised by Clinton on why the US wanted China and the Asean to
resolve their conflict multilaterally or through the United Nations Convention
of the Law of the Sea or Unclos.
But Beijing balked at Clinton’s
suggestion and insisted on settling the disputes bilaterally with “relevant
countries.”
Beijing and Washington stuck to
their positions during Clinton’s visit to China on Wednesday, but avoided delving deeper into the issue
when the US official sat down with Chinese Prime Minister Hu Jin Yang added that
“there are no issues currently in this area [South China Sea]; nor will there
ever be issues in that area in the future.”
Clinton, on the other hand,
renewed the US’ call for China to agree on a “code of conduct” for managing territorial disputes in the
South China Sea.
Clinton said it was in
“everyone’s interest” for China and Asean to agree on the code.
Yang responded by saying that it
would take note of Clinton’s call to consider agreeing on a code of conduct,
but also firmly stressed that it would resolve the issue on the South China Sea
through bilateral negotiations
“As for the disputes over the
sovereignty of some islands and reefs of the Nansha Islands and the overlapping
rights and interest of claims over some waters of the South China Sea, this
should be discussed by directly concerned countries on the basis of historical
facts and international law and handled and settled for direct negotiation and
a friendly consultation,” Yang said.
Yang added that China “had
plentiful historical and jurisprudential evidence” in claiming virtually the
entire South China Sea, a claim being disputed by the Philippines and Vietnam,
which accused China of infringing in their territories.
He also urged Southeast Asian
countries to “act in accordance” with the “principle and spirit” of the
Declaration of Conduct.
In recent weeks, Beijing had raised its stake in the islands by
establishing Sansha City and a military garrison, which was quickly followed by
the election of members of the city and municipal government.
China’s actions were met by strong
protests by both Hanoi and Manila, which claimed that Beijing violated the
spirit of the Conduct Parties in the South China Sea, which calls on all
claimants to “exercise restraint and stop new occupation of territories”.
The ASEAN and China signed the DOC
in 2002.
The Philippines and Vietnam have
urged fellow Asean members to agree on a code of conduct, using the
“Declaration” as its framework.
Meanwhile, Cagayan de Oro Rep.
Rufus Rodriguez filed on Wednesday House Resolution 2634 urging the Foreign Affairs department to
“inform or report to us members of the House of Representatives on the actions
it already took or is planning to take,” referring to the South China Sea
conflict.
The resolution has enjoined the
DFA to take “all necessary diplomatic and legal actions” in order to protect
the sovereignty and defend territorial claims in the disputed areas.
It noted that recent developments
at the West Philippine Sea (South China Sea) show that China still continues to
send various sea vessels to the area including at least 20 fishing boats, only
five nautical miles from the Philippine occupied Pag-asa Island.
The ships were reportedly
escorted by frigates and maritime surveillance ships.
Sara Fabunan
Business & Investment Opportunities
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