ASEAN diplomats meet with China as friction rises over Beijing's extensive maritime claims.
Vientiane, Laos: Top diplomats from Southeast Asia met China's foreign minister in Laos on Friday for talks that come as friction escalates over Beijing's growing efforts to assert its vast maritime claims in the South China Sea.
Several members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations have territorial disputes with China that have led to direct conflicts that many worry could lead to wider conflicts.
“One wrong step in the South China Sea will turn a small fire into a terrible typhoon,” Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi said ahead of talks with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
ASEAN members Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei are all at loggerheads with China over its claims to almost all of the South China Sea, one of the world's most vital waterways for shipping. Indonesia has also expressed concern over what it sees as Beijing's encroachment into its exclusive economic zone.
Meanwhile, the US and its allies have regularly conducted military exercises and patrols in the region to promote their “free and open Indo-Pacific” policy, including the right of navigation in international waters, which has drawn criticism from China. .
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken was due to arrive on Saturday to attend ASEAN foreign ministers' meetings and was expected to meet Wang on the sidelines.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov is also present at this meeting and has had direct talks with Wang before.
China is a key ally of Russia in its war against Ukraine, and Wang stressed the “deep strategic coordination” between the two countries, according to China's official news agency Xinhua.
Josep Borrell, the EU's top diplomat, urged ASEAN ministers not to ignore European conflicts when holding their meetings.
I know that Russia's aggression in Ukraine may seem far from ASEAN, but its consequences, whether in inflation or rising food and oil prices, are being felt by our own people, even though Russia is trying hard to spread the word. try wrong Burrell said.
This year, tensions between the Philippines – a US ally – and China have escalated. In June, a Chinese ship and a Philippine supply vessel collided near the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, raising the alarm.
Asean members – Indonesia, Thailand, Singapore, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Myanmar, Cambodia, Brunei and Laos – stressed at their opening meetings on Thursday that it was important not to be absorbed as both China and the United States seek to expand. are. influence in the region
Continuing the talks, Marsodi said that the group has emphasized that it should not be a proxy for any power, otherwise it will be difficult for ASEAN to become an anchor of regional stability and peace.
Wang did not mention the South China Sea in his opening remarks at a meeting with ASEAN ministers on Friday, instead emphasizing China's economic and trade ties.
But the issue was raised and Indonesia asked China to “participate in maintaining peace, stability and prosperity in the region,” Indonesia's foreign ministry said.
Asean ministers stressed the importance of completing ongoing work with China to develop a code of conduct for the South China Sea, as the issues remain a “stumbling block” in Asean relations with China, the ministry said.
According to Marsudi, “Indonesia's position is firm, that is, all claims must be settled peacefully through direct dialogue between the parties concerned.”
China and the Philippines said on Sunday they had reached an agreement they hoped would end their standoff, aimed at creating a mutually acceptable arrangement for the disputed region without accepting either side's territorial claims.
There is disagreement within ASEAN over how to deal with China's maritime claims, and the Philippines has been critical of the bloc's lack of tangible support.
At Thursday's talks, the Philippines pushed for the June incident to be included in a joint statement to be issued at the end of the meetings. Cambodia and Laos, which are close to China, objected to the wording, according to a senior Southeast Asian diplomat who participated in the closed-door talks and spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter freely.
The diplomat said Manila's proposal said a recent incident in the South China Sea had caused “property damage” and “injuries” without specifying specific details such as the name of the submarine and the hostile government forces.
Thailand's Foreign Minister Maris Sangyampongsa said the increasingly violent civil war in Asean member Myanmar was also one of the main issues under consideration, and the group supported Thailand playing a broader role.
Thailand, which shares a long border with Myanmar, has already been involved in providing humanitarian aid. Maris announced that another $250,000 will be donated to the ASEAN Center for the Coordination of Humanitarian Aid in Natural Disaster Management, which is overseeing a plan to send aid to Myanmar.
Myanmar's military ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021 and suppressed widespread non-violent protests seeking a return to democratic rule, leading to increased violence and a humanitarian crisis.
ASEAN has sought a “five-point consensus” for peace, but the military leadership in Myanmar has so far ignored the plan, raising questions about the bloc's effectiveness and credibility.
The statement calls for an immediate end to violence in Myanmar, dialogue among all interested parties, mediation by the ASEAN Special Envoy, delivery of humanitarian aid through ASEAN channels, and a visit by the Special Envoy to Myanmar to meet with all relevant parties.
Myanmar has been barred from sending political representatives to ASEAN meetings and is instead represented by Aung Kyaw Moo, the permanent secretary of Myanmar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
China, which also shares a long border with Myanmar, also plays an important role in supporting the military regime while maintaining close ties to several powerful ethnic armed groups currently fighting it.
In his opening statement ahead of ASEAN-China talks, Aung Kyaw Mo praised Beijing and pledged that the association will continue to work to deepen cooperation with China in all areas.
