They wanted changes in certain
paragraphs of the chairman's draft statement.
A spokesman from Singapore's
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) said the draft statement had contained some
inaccuracies that had to be corrected, especially when the statement had quoted
ASEAN leaders on the discussions on the South China Sea.
It is understood that the
statement had made reference to the South China Sea issue and a call by the
Cambodian Chair not to "ïnternationalise" the issue.
The MFA spokesman added that
Singapore, along with the Philippines, Brunei, Indonesia and Vietnam had
explained their positions to the chairman.
It is understood that if the
inaccuracies are not corrected, there's a likelihood that individual countries
could possibly disassociate themselves from the chairman's statement.
It's also understood that the
Cambodian Chair is acting on the feedback from the member countries.
Cambodia is hosting the regional
grouping's summit and the East Asia Summit, attended by leaders from the US as
well as Asia Pacific powers such as China, Japan and South Korea.
In response to media queries, MFA
said the South China Sea issue was not the only issue that member countries had
clarified on. They have done so for other parts of the statement.
When asked about the reaction of
the Philippines and a few other ASEAN member states to Cambodian Premier Hun
Sen's call that the South China Sea issue should not be internationalised,
Singapore's Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong stressed that it is also about the
freedom of navigation.
Mr Lee said: "All the user
states have a legitimate interest in freedom of navigation which must not be
compromised. But as far as the sovereignty claims (are concerned), those have
to be resolved among the participants, the claimant states themselves. ASEAN's
role in this is (that) ASEAN counsels moderation and restraint and we try to
work towards a code of conduct as the next step.
"No country can say, "I
give up what I have previously claimed and let the other country take it."
So, to resolve the issue, I think we wait for a wiser generation to come. But
to manage the problem and to prevent it from either causing friction or
sparking off some unintended explosion or escalation, I think that is what we
need to do."
- CNA/ir/de
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