South China Sea code of conduct 'may take a while'
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Asean, Chinese officials still looking for common ground on norms of practice
It appears that Asean and China will take time to set up a code of conduct as the norm of practice in the South China Sea, as both sides have differences and the process still has a long way to go.
“It will take time. We are following the guidelines on a step-by-step basis and can now identify a lot of common features,” Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said. “Someday we will have the document, but I don’t know when.”
Liu co-chaired meetings with Thai Foreign Ministry’s permanent secretary, Sihasak Phuangketkeow, on Monday and yesterday to discuss the South China Sea issue and enhance cooperation under the strategic partnership.
Senior officials on both sides made an effort to add elements to the code of conduct “commonality paper” proposed by a joint working group in Singapore last month.
The senior officials want the joint working group to expand the paper and cover all aspects in order to add to the code of conduct, Sihasak said, adding that so far the working group had addressed all principles mentioned in many Asean papers and statements on the South China Sea.
The conflict between China and some Asean members over the South China Sea is long-standing, and both sides want rules of practice in the troubled waters. Beijing and certain Asean members, notably the Philippines and Vietnam, have been locked in a stand-off over the past few years.
Asean and China signed the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) in 2002, but the dispute continued and the paper was not effective in either settling or preventing the problem.
While Asean wants to have a binding code of conduct to regulate practices in the area, China wants to implement the DOC fully and effectively.
However, if the code of conduct comes into force, it will not be a mechanism to settle conflicts, but more a norm of behaviour for countries in the region engaging in the South China Sea, an Asean official said.
The guidelines on the code of conduct as set by Asean ministers earlier should provide confidence-building measures. The guideline should be able to prevent incidents at sea and become a mechanism to manage incidents should any take place, Sihasak said.
Senior officials from Asean and China also took part in the 20th China-Asean Senior Officials’ Consultation yesterday to review the progress of cooperation in various sectors.
Thailand has a year and a half left as coordinator of Asean and China, and will try to ensure that relations between both sides are balanced, developed and comprehensive, Sihasak said. “We will not allow other difficult issues to override the cooperation,” he said.
On the code of conduct, Asean hopes there is an early conclusion, he said. “We will be realistic and work hard to achieve the objectives,” he said.
