The Philippines welcomed the plan of China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to finish the general framework of the Code of Conduct by June 2017.
On Wednesday, China announced that it agreed with the Asean to finish by June 2017 the framework for a COC to resolve West Philippine Sea maritime disputes. However, it still insisted on finding a solution independent of Western intervention.
In a press conference, Department of Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Jose, however, noted that the 10-member countries and China must soon draft detailed guidelines for settling clashing territorial claims on what the Asian superpower calls the South China Sea.
“That’s the mutual aspiration of the Asean and China, especially the Philippines, because it is consistent with our position to have a expeditious conclusion to the negotiation for the COC,” Jose said.
The Declaration of Conduct signed in 2002 between China and the Asean is a non-binding edict aimed at reducing tensions in the region and preventing claimant-countries—i.e. China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan—from aggressively pursuing their claims.
The COC, on the other hand, is a more binding edict enshrined in the DOC. It hopes to further promote peace and stability in the economically vital sea lane.
“We reached a broad consensus on pushing forward the negotiations on a code of conduct for the South China Sea. All sides agreed to raise the frequency of the negotiations in a situation without interference, and seek to finish a draft framework of the code of conduct by the middle of next year,” Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin said.
Beijing-owned news site China Daily, on the other hand, said that aside from agreeing to craft a framework for the COC by mid-2017, China and the 10-member Asean is also set to approve guidelines for a China-Asean hotline for maritime emergencies.
“It shows that as the situation in the South China Sea is getting more and more complicated, especially with the interference of external forces. Asean countries and China have realized that we have to grasp the key to the South China Sea issue in our own hand,” Liu said.
On July 12, the United Nations Permanent Court of Arbitration ruled in favor of the Philippines and invalidated China’s excessive nine-dash line claim on the West Philippine Sea.