Talks on South China Sea code of conduct ‘need to address concerns of claimant and user states’, compromise needed
SINGAPORE — Talks on a Code of Conduct (COC) for the South China Sea between China and the Association of South-east Asian Nations (Asean) are progressing, but the issue is a complex one and will need the countries involved to accommodate one another’s interests, said Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen on Sunday (June 3).
Speaking to reporters after the end of the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, Dr Ng noted that there is an expectation that the COC should at least address the concerns of all claimant states of the strategic waterway.
“Ultimately that must be it, but it must also address the concerns of the user states because the South China Sea, like key waterways, is no ordinary passage,” he said.
“One should be able to sail through these waterways with quite complete certainty that to the extent possible nothing untoward will happen. I mean that's the key confidence building measure.”
China’s claims in the South China Sea, through which more than US$5 trillion (S$6.7 trillion) in shipborne trade passes each year, are contested by four Asean members - Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam – as well as Taiwan.
Beijing has also reclaimed islands in the disputed waters and built military installations on them which it said were for defensive purposes and would not affect the freedom of navigation or overflights allowed by international law.
The Chinese and Southeast Asian foreign ministers in August adopted a negotiating framework for the code of conduct, a move they hailed as progress but seen by some critics as a tactic to buy China time to consolidate its maritime power.
In March, a joint working group was held on the implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.
On Sunday, Dr Ng was asked about resolving how some countries want the code of conduct to be legally binding, while other negotiating parties do not.
He said: “Obviously if you want a document which is effective and predictable to the greatest extent, a legally binding document would be the preference of every one. But I remind everybody that Unclos is not legally binding.”
Unclos is the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, which among other things, sets out the Exclusive Economic Zones of countries’ territorial waters.
“It has enforcement aspects, dispute mechanisms so legally binding is quite a wide phrase, what does it mean?” said Dr Ng.
He added that Asean and China ought to first agree on measures that address the concerns of both the claimant and user states.
“Then the next level is what happens when you feel that people are acting not consistent with the code of code. Are there dispute resolution mechanisms? Are there legally binding courts?” he said.
“These aspects will need to be worked out. But it is a complex issue and I think we should set expectations,” he added.
“On the other hand, be flexible to accept that as we try to accommodate more and more needs, there needs to be some accommodation by individual countries.”
