By SAMMY JULIAN
Manila News Bureau Chief
MANILA – The Philippines is looking forward to the possibility of a first ever meeting of all claimants to the South China Sea.
Saying this is “a very productive suggestion,” Foreign Affairs Secretary Albert del Rosario disclosed that they are currently “endeavoring to make that happen.”
“It is a work in progress,” del Rosario said during a joint press briefing ith acting Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow on Friday at the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) headquarters in Pasay City.
Four of the claimants – the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei – are members of the Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
Likewise, according to del Rosario, they are now “trying to obtain consensus” from ASEAN member states regarding another suggestion that had been proffered by Indonesia for a special foreign ministers’ meeting to discuss and perhaps ease the tensions in the disputed region.
For his part, voicing his country’s concern on the current situation in the South China Sea, Foreign Minister Sihasak emphasized the need for self-restraint among rival claimants and their commitment for peaceful resolutions of the dispute.
Sihasak is currently visiting the country to speak about the political situation in Thailand.
“We do want to see de-escalation of tension,” he said during the joint press briefing. “We want to see all sides engaging in confidence building measure. More cooperation whenever it is possible.”
Thailand is the country coordinator for the ASEAN-China dialogue relations.
“We have done our best to move forward the relationships and to contribute whatever we can with regard to the issue,” the Thai foreign minister stressed. “This issue is important to the peace and
stability of the region.”
At the same time, Sihasak said Thailand see arbitration as an important means to peacefully resolve the dispute.
“Most importantly, we want to see the early conclusion of a Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC) between ASEAN and China as well as the full implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC),” he said.
With the desire to promote peaceful, friendly and harmonious environment in the South China Sea, ASEAN and China signed the DOC in November 2002 in Phnom Penh. After a series of discussions, ASEAN and China adopted the Guidelines to implement the DOC on July 21, 2011 in Bali.
The first official consultations on the COC and the implementation of the DOC was at the convening of the 6th Senior Officials’ Meeting (SOM) on the Implementation of the DOC held on September 15, 2013 in Suzhou, China.
Since then, the 10th ASEAN-China Joint Working Group (JWG) on DOC was held last March in Singapore and the 7th ASEAN-China SOM on DOC held the following month in Pattaya, Thailand, to move forward the momentum on the implementation of the DOC and consultations on the COC.
According to Sihasak, another senior official level meeting with the Chinese side has been scheduled in October
“We hope to move forward for the full implementation of DOC and the early conclusion of the COC,” he said./PN
