ID :
196192
Thu, 07/21/2011 - 07:09
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/196192
The shortlink copeid
LANDMARK DEAL ON SOUTH CHINA SEA
NUSA DUA (BALI), July 21 (Bernama) -- Senior Asean and China officials have reached a landmark agreement on the Guidelines on the Implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.
Although still at an early stage, the document raises hopes for a peaceful resolution to the overlapping claims in the South China Sea.
"This is a significant and good start for us to work together to continue dialogue and cooperation with a view to further promote this stability and confidence in the region," Pham Quang Vinh, an assistant to Vietnam's foreign minister, told reporters after the Asean-China Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) here Wednesday.
China's Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said the officials would submit what they had approved to their ministers for final endorsement.
"This is an important milestone document on the cooperation among China and Asean countries.
"We have a bright future and we are looking forward to future cooperation," he said.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, in his speech at the opening of the Asean Foreign Ministers Meeting here on Tuesday, stressed on the importance of stability in the area.
“We need to send a strong signal to the world that the future of the South China Sea is a predictable, manageable and optimistic one. And, we need to finalise long overdue guidelines.
“We need to get moving to the next phase, which is identifying the elements of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea,” he said.
Initiatives on South China Sea, Conflict Resolution and Peacekeeping Cooperation and People Engagement are among the issues noted in a comprehensive Asean Joint Communique.
In the communique, Asean stressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea, and the continued exercise of self-restraint by all parties concerned, and the promotion of confidence building measures in the area.
It said that Asean would seek to finalise the Guidelines on the
Implementation of Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.
The Communique also noted with appreciation, the proposal of the Philippines on a Zone of Peace, Freedom, Friendship and Cooperation, and tasked the Asean SOM –- with the assistance of maritime legal experts -– to study the proposal.
Disputes over overlapping claims made the news again in recent months, with several claimant states accusing one another of intrusion but at the same time, they also voiced support for peaceful resolution of their disputes through dialogue.
The Communique also welcomed the establishment of the Asean Institute for Peace and Reconciliation.
Although still at an early stage, the document raises hopes for a peaceful resolution to the overlapping claims in the South China Sea.
"This is a significant and good start for us to work together to continue dialogue and cooperation with a view to further promote this stability and confidence in the region," Pham Quang Vinh, an assistant to Vietnam's foreign minister, told reporters after the Asean-China Senior Officials Meeting (SOM) here Wednesday.
China's Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said the officials would submit what they had approved to their ministers for final endorsement.
"This is an important milestone document on the cooperation among China and Asean countries.
"We have a bright future and we are looking forward to future cooperation," he said.
Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, in his speech at the opening of the Asean Foreign Ministers Meeting here on Tuesday, stressed on the importance of stability in the area.
“We need to send a strong signal to the world that the future of the South China Sea is a predictable, manageable and optimistic one. And, we need to finalise long overdue guidelines.
“We need to get moving to the next phase, which is identifying the elements of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea,” he said.
Initiatives on South China Sea, Conflict Resolution and Peacekeeping Cooperation and People Engagement are among the issues noted in a comprehensive Asean Joint Communique.
In the communique, Asean stressed the importance of maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea, and the continued exercise of self-restraint by all parties concerned, and the promotion of confidence building measures in the area.
It said that Asean would seek to finalise the Guidelines on the
Implementation of Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.
The Communique also noted with appreciation, the proposal of the Philippines on a Zone of Peace, Freedom, Friendship and Cooperation, and tasked the Asean SOM –- with the assistance of maritime legal experts -– to study the proposal.
Disputes over overlapping claims made the news again in recent months, with several claimant states accusing one another of intrusion but at the same time, they also voiced support for peaceful resolution of their disputes through dialogue.
The Communique also welcomed the establishment of the Asean Institute for Peace and Reconciliation.
