“China has confidence that it can work with the Philippines to progressively improve our relationship”, he said, adding that ties with the new government of Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte had started well.
Advertisement
China pulled out all the stops to block any reference to the words “recent activities”, “serious concern”, “reclamation”, “militarization”, “loss of trust” and “need to respect legal processes”, but failed as all these phrases made it into the statement, said a senior US administration official who requested anonymity to discuss diplomatic discussions.
In a bid to ease tensions over the territorial disputes, ASEAN and China adopted a protocol and a communication hotline among foreign ministers to avoid clashes resulting from unplanned encounters.
President Rodrigo Duterte said the Philippines follows worldwide law in the disputed West Philippine Sea, which is a portion of the South China Sea.
China claims almost all of the sea, even waters approaching the coasts of the Philippines and other Southeast Asian nations.
“No new action has been taken by China”.
But China denied the accusations, saying it has simply “maintained a number of coast guard vessels for law enforcement patrols” in the area, according to the Chinese embassy in Manila.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is also in Laos this week, with ASEAN hosting a series of regional meetings, and gathered with Obama later Thursday at an 18-nation East Asia summit. China is involved in a raging dispute with the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei over ownership of territory in the SCS, a busy waterway through which India’s 50 per cent trade passes.
Meanwhile, Japan’s Nikkei reported that Abe expressed deep concern about China’s “continued attempts to unilaterally change the status quo in the South and East China seas over the past few months” and warned Southeast Asian leaders against taking too conciliatory a stance towards Beijing.
“A total of 16 out of 18 nations, including all Asean member nations, supported the joint efforts by China and Asean to push ahead with negotiations on the code of conduct on the South China Sea”, he said.
President Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte, together with some Cabinet members and business leaders, poses for a photo at the 13th ASEAN Business and Investment Summit in Moung Thanh Luxury Hotel in Vientiane, Laos on Tuesday (September 6, 2016).
Concerns have intensified sharply in recent years as China has built artificial islands on reefs and islets in the Spratlys archipelago – another strategically important location – that are capable of supporting military installation and operations. Cambodia, for example, remains in China’s camp, as does Laos to a large extent, preventing any robust statement from the consensus-bound ASEAN group.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said that China hadn’t done anything to alter the circumstances in the waters surrounding the shoal.
Obama has urged China to adhere to the rule of law and not take unilateral measures that could raise tension.
“If we are not here interacting and learning from you, and understanding the culture of the region, then we will be left behind”, he said.
Advertisement
Both Duterte and Li attended the 19th ASEAN Summit to Commemorate the 26th Anniversary of ASEAN-China Dialogue Relations on Wednesday.
