China's moves to 'militarize' S. China Sea on ASEAN meeting agenda

From the Philippine News Agency (Feb 27): China's moves to 'militarize' S. China Sea on ASEAN meeting agenda

China's recent artificial island-building and fortification of its garrison in the South China Sea is among the pressing political and security challenges that ASEAN foreign ministers will discuss when they meet in the Laotian capital Saturday, ASEAN diplomats interviewed by Kyodo News said Friday.

One diplomat told Kyodo News that ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations are "seriously concerned" by recent and ongoing developments in the South China Sea.

Specifically, ASEAN sources said the ministers will have frank discussions about the land reclamation and escalation of activities in the disputed sea, saying "these assertive moves erode trust and confidence, increase tension and may undermine peace, security and stability in the region."

Charles Jose, a spokesman for the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs, told a news conference in Manila on Tuesday that the Philippines will focus on maritime security, saying that China's construction of islands in the disputed waters has heightened tensions in the South China Sea.

Jose said that reports claiming Beijing has positioned surface-to-air missiles in the disputed territory in the Paracel Islands chain are a cause of concern.

"We are expressing concern over these developments, including the reported missiles on Woody Island," Jose said. "Of course all these things raise our concern and its effect on freedom of navigation, over-flight and unimpeded flow of commerce. In this meeting we will continue to express our concern with the developments in the South China Sea."

Laos, this year's ASEAN chairman, will issue a press statement at the end of the day-long retreat Saturday.

"There are ongoing discussions and consultations on whether to include in the press statement a line that says that ministers reaffirmed their commitment to non-militarization and self-restraint in the conduct of activities in the South China Sea," an official source said.

As of Thursday night, an ASEAN official said the draft press statement still contains paragraphs on maritime security and the South China Sea "that may or may not be there (in the final statement)."

Like in past meetings, the ministers are expected to stress the importance of maintaining peace, security, stability, and freedom of navigation in and over-flight above the South China Sea.

ASEAN officials said the ministers will again "emphasize the need to enhance mutual trust and confidence, exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities and avoid actions that may further complicate the situation" in the disputed sea.

The ministers are also expected to underscore the importance of the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea that China and the 10-member ASEAN signed in 2002, according to the officials.

Another ASEAN official said that ASEAN wants "substantive development" and "an expeditious establishment" of the code of conduct, a binding code aimed at reducing the risk of conflict in the disputed sea that ASEAN and China have been trying to hammer out since efforts to reopen talks began in 2012.

Competing claims to the South China Sea have for decades been a source of tension in the region.

China's recent moves to conduct massive land reclamation in the sea have further escalated tensions, leading even non-claimants like the United States to voice concerns.

The overlapping territorial and maritime disputes involving China and four ASEAN members -- Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam -- have divided ASEAN on how to deal with the issue.

Aside from maritime security issues, the ASEAN ministers are also expected to discuss other issues, including emerging non-traditional security challenges such as terrorism, cyber security, natural disasters, climate change, irregular migration, and trafficking in persons and protection of the rights of migrant workers.

The impact of North Korea's latest nuclear test on peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and developments in the Middle East are also in the agenda, according to informed sources.

A draft of the press statement seen by Kyodo News said the ASEAN ministers will again reiterate its "full support for the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful manner" and call on all parties concerned "to exert more efforts to maintain peace and security" in that region "and create an environment conducive to early resumption of the six-party talks to help pave the way for maintaining and strengthening peace, security and stability in the Korean Peninsula."

On January's terror attacks in Jakarta, the draft said the ministers will again reaffirm "ASEAN's commitment to working with the international community to further intensify its cooperation to combat terrorism in all its form and manifestations, regardless of their motivation, wherever, and by whom."

Four of the South China Sea's six claimants -- Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam -- are members of the 10-nation ASEAN that also includes Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Singapore. Taiwan is also a claimant.

The South China Sea is essential to the global economy. Up to 50 percent of the world's oil tanker shipments, and over half of the world's merchant tonnage, passes through the South China Sea.

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