DAVAO CITY—President Duterte is urging Asean nations and China to “immediately conclude” a binding code of conduct (COC) in the South China Sea to reverse what he described as a “fast- eroding trust” in their relations with the frequency of incidents between China and several Asean nations in the world’s most contested sea territory today.
Act quickly, Duterte told the leaders of Asean and China, in the Asean-China Dialogue Relations held over the weekend in Bangkok, a side event to the 34th Asean Summit. Duterte moderated the dialogue.
“The faster we finish the process, the more credible Asean and China would be as partners for security and stability,” he said, as Duterte also expressed “grave concern” over activities in the South China Sea that he said “erode trust and confidence, and undermine peace and stability in the region.”
He warned that any further delay in the negotiations for a substantive and effective COC is detrimental to the region.
The COC has been floated more than a decade ago but it has not been acted upon.
The President returned to Manila on Sunday night.
The Philippines is itself embroiled following a recent smashup between a Filipino fishing boat and regular Chinese ship.
The President said, however, that what happened at Recto Bank was a “maritime incident” which immediately drew criticism.
He also conveyed his gratitude to the captain and crew of the Vietnamese fishing vessel who saved Filipino fishermen near Recto Bank in the West Philippine Sea last week, a statement from the Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) said on Monday.
In the same Asean-China dialogue, Duterte called for the effective implementation of international instruments, such as the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, to create a conducive environment for negotiations and maintain peace and stability.
He called on Asean to be the voice of reason and moderation in the region “in the midst of profound geopolitical shifts, protecting time-honored principles of international law.”
US-China trade war
HE also asked Asean to strengthen its commitment to a rules-based multilateral trading system, even as he appealed to China and the US to resolve their differences, citing the grave impact of the ongoing US-China trade war on global growth and economic integration.
The President also asked Asean leaders to intensify cooperation in addressing nontraditional security threats, such as terrorism, violent extremism, transnational crimes, illegal drugs and climate change, stressing heavy polluters must be held to account, the PCOO statement said.
He said the regional efforts must be enhanced to combat marine debris and prevent the export of garbage to Asean countries.
Meanwhile, President Duterte joined other leaders at the 13th Brunei Darussalam-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East Asean Growth Area (BIMP-Eaga) Summit. The BIMP-Eaga is one of the subregional groupings under Asean.
This subgrouping agreed to promote greater connectivity and cross-border trade, narrow development gap and enhance military and police cooperation to address terrorism and piracy in the high seas.
President Duterte also held bilateral meetings with Indonesian President Joko Widodo and Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha to strengthen bilateral relations.
In his meeting with Widodo, both leaders lauded the completion of the two countries’ respective domestic requirements for the entry into force of the Philippines-Indonesia Agreement Concerning the Delimitation of the Exclusive Economic Zone Boundary.
The PCOO said that at the conclusion of the summit, Asean leaders adopted four important documents: the Asean Leaders’ Vision Statement on Partnership for Sustainability, the Asean Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, the Asean Leaders’ Statement on the Asean Cultural Year 2019 and the Bangkok Declaration on Combatting Marine Debris in Asean region.