Asean: We remain seriously concerned

MANILA, Philippines - Ministers struggle over communiqué wording on sea row.

Foreign ministers of the ASEAN adopted last night a joint final communiqué, saying that they “remained seriously concerned” about reclamation in the South China Sea.

The final joint communique was issued at the end of the 48th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia after days of disagreement over wording on the sea dispute.

“We discussed extensively the matters relating to the South China Sea and remained seriously concerned over recent and ongoing developments in the area. We took note of the serious concerns expressed by some Ministers on the land reclamations in the South China Sea, which have eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine peace, security and stability in the South China Sea,” the communique said.

Singapore’s Minister for Foreign Affairs K. Shanmugam said the delay in finalizing the communique on Wednesday was due to difficulties in reaching a consensus over “lines concerning the South China Sea.”

The ASEAN reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, security, stability, and freedom of navigation in and overflight above the South China Sea and stressed the need for all parties to ensure the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) in its entirety.

It urged all the parties concerned to resolve differences and disputes through peaceful means and in accordance with universally recognized principles of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

While noting the progress made in the consultations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC), the ministers reiterated the importance of expeditious establishment of an effective COC.

The ministers welcomed the recent outcome of the 9th ASEAN-China SOM on the Implementation of the DOC as they agreed to proceed to the next stage of consultations and address crucial, and complicated issues on the proposed COC.

Senior officials of the ASEAN were also tasked to follow up and work closely with China on the matter.

The Philippines briefed the meeting on further developments, including matters particularly relating to UNCLOS.

While the work towards the expeditious establishment of the COC are undertaken, ASEAN agreed that “preventive measures should be undertaken to address developments in the South China Sea, with the objective of enhancing trust and confidence among parties concerned.”

The statement also cited Indonesia’s proposal to establish a hotline of communications at the high level in the government between ASEAN and China to address emergency situations on the ground that need immediate intervention, which aim to immediately reduce tensions on the ground.