The Asean bloc is moving towards a stronger stance on the issue of South China Sea (SCS) territorial dispute, even as the US bared fresh initiatives for member-states to enhance maritime domain awareness and other maritime-related undertakings.
Asean’s stronger position was very evident during the recent US-Asean Special Summit where maritime security became a major point of discussion, according to two US officials during a teleconference with journalists from the region on Tuesday.
“I think that during the discussions themselves, our view is that there are some very strong statements on the South China Sea and on the importance of living up to some basic principles of international law,” Edward D. Kagan, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for East Asia and Oceania of the National Security Council said as he recalled what transpired during summit.
“I think that we left here feeling that there’s actually more alignment between our views and those of Asean as a group, as compared to some of the bilateral discussions than we had expected,” he added.
During the meeting, US officials led by President Joe Biden and Asean officials were in consensus on the issue of disputed portions of the SCS, which was also clear in the joint statement that they issued later after the summit.
“We are focused on ensuring peace and stability and prosperity across the South China Sea. We’re focused on ensuring that the key to maintaining peace, security, and stability in the region is ensuring that all disputes and all behavior are both resolved in, and rooted in international law, including UNCLOS,” Assistant Secretary of State, Bureau of East Asian and Pacific Affairs of the US State Department Daniel J. Kritenbrink said.
“We reiterated our support for freedom of navigation and overflight. We also stated our support for the full implementation of the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of the Parties, and also we support an environment conducive to a code of conduct on the South China Sea while emphasizing that any code of conduct has to be consistent with international law,” he added.
With maritime security as one of the themes during the summit, US Vice President Kamala Harris unveiled a $60-million fund for new regional maritime initiatives that seek to strengthen maritime law enforcement, improve maritime domain awareness and curb illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing.
“There were many initiatives that we announced, as we outlined in our fact sheet that was released on day one of the summit. And that fact sheet and its deliverables were all aimed at deepening our relations with a strengthened and empowered Asean,” Kritenbrinck said.
The amount is part of the overall $150 million in new initiatives in Southeast Asia by the US, and this is aside from the $12.1 billion in development, economic, health and security assistance and more than $1.4 billion in humanitarian package it has provided to the region since 2002.
The US has also invested more than $3.3 billion in public health alone since 2002.
The Biden administration has also included in the fiscal year 2023 budget request of more than $800 million in bilateral assistance for Asean partners and more than $25 million to deepen relations with the region.