Next ASEAN summit to focus on South China Sea tensions
Naypyidaw (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Hanoi and Manila will raise the issue of Beijing's recent "provocations" in the South China Sea, including the armed clash between Chinese and Vietnamese vessels near the disputed Paracel Islands, at the next ASEAN summit. In fact the 24th Plenary Assembly of the Association which brings together 10 nations of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN ) opened this morning in Yangon, Myanmar, and, in addition to the issue of the Rohingya Muslim minority in Burma, attention will focus on the disputes threatening to erupt in the Asia-Pacific waters. Diplomats from Vietnam and the Philippines state that China's claims in the disputed waters violate the Declaration of Conduct signed by all parties in 2002. Tensions have been heightened by Beijing's construction of an extraction rig off the Paracel islands, in an area (within 200 nautical miles) considered the Exclusive Economic Zone of Hanoi.
On the Philippine side , the tension with Beijing revolves around the constant presence of Chinese military ships near the Second Thomas Shoal and the increase in poaching activities in Manila's territories. An ASEAN diplomat stressed these issues can no longer be ignored because inaction only "raises tension in the South China Sea".
However, it is still unclear whether ASEAN leaders will mention specific incidents in the final declaration, which falls to Myanmar as president of the association. Inside sources report that "consultations are taking place", the outcome of which remain uncertain. In the past Manila has accused Cambodia, a close Chinese regional ally of China, of bowing to pressure from Beijing by blocking the insertion of declarations that the Chinese government would find unpleasant in the ASEAN documents . In fact one ASEAN summit ended without a final declaration for this very reason .
Instead, China blames Vietnam for being the alleged perpetrator of the recent tensions in the seas; according to Beijing Hanoi ships deliberately rammed against Chinese vessels to stop exploration operations. The governments of ASEAN countries can no longer hide their concern and call on all parties to show "self-restraint" and avoid any action that could lead to a further increase in the level of confrontation. During the meeting, Philippine President Benigno Aquino III should ultimately inform other countries of the progress in the case brought against Beijing by Manila at the UN international tribunal.
Vietnam is not alone in its concerns. The Philippines too has been increasingly worried about Beijing's imperialism in the South China and East China seas. The Chinese government claims most of the sea (almost 85 per cent), including sovereignty over the disputed Spratly and Paracel islands, in opposition to Vietnam, Taiwan, the Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia. In recent months, China has used various political, economic and diplomatic means to hamper non-Chinese vessels from fishing or moving through the disputed waters. For the United States, which backs the claims of Southeast Asia nations, Beijing's so-called 'cow tongue' line is both "illegal" and "irrational".
Anyone with a hegemonic sway over the region would have a strategic advantage, in terms of seabed (oil and gas) development, but also in trade since two thirds of the world's maritime trade transit through it. Almost uninhabited, the area's islands are thought to hold extensive oil and natural gas reserves as well as other raw materials. India, Australia and the United States are also parties to the dispute in various degrees. In view of the conflicting interests and alliances that crisscross the Asia-Pacific region, the area is one of the hottest geopolitical spots in the world, one that could even trigger a new global war.
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