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	The group&#39;s foreign ministers did not issue a joint communique -which one official called &quot;unprecedented&quot; - after tense discussions by the 10-member bloc on the maritime territories.</div>
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	Beijing claims nearly all of the South China Sea, which contains key shipping lanes and is believed to be rich in oil and gas deposits. Asean members Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines and Brunei have competing claims, as does Taiwan.</div>
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	China and the Philippines were involved in a stand-off in May after Chinese fishermen entered the disputed Scarborough Shoal, 230 kilometres west of the Philippines.</div>
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	Cambodia, which holds the chair for 2012, said a joint communiquewas not possible after members failed to agree on whether to mention the Scarborough Shoal incident in the text.//DPA</div>

Asean meeting ends without agreement on South China Sea issue

Phnom Penh - Members of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) failed to agree on how to tackle disputes in the South China Sea, at the close of a week of meetings in Phnom Penh on Friday.