Cites need to adhere to int’l laws during ASEAN-China negotiations

The Philippines stood its ground in the latest round of negotiations on the ASEAN-China Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea, strongly reaffirming its commitment to international law and its sovereign rights amid growing tensions in the region.

“The Philippines voiced its concerns on the situation in the West Philippine Sea, especially with regard to recent incidents that posed risks to Philippine vessels and personnel, and actions by other countries that infringed on the Philippines’ sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction,” the Department of Foreign Affairs said.

“The Philippines also reiterated its commitment to resolve disputes peacefully and to pursue constructive diplomatic approaches in managing differences at sea,” it added.

Held in Manila from April 9 to 11, the meeting of the Joint Working Group on the Implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (JWG-DOC) brought together ASEAN member states and China to continue talks on the long-delayed COC.

Malaysia, as chairman of ASEAN for 2025, and China co-chaired the round.

The Philippines called for adherence to international laws, particularly the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 South China Sea Arbitral Award, the DFA said.

“Our position is we should have at least on paper an effective and substantive Code and then we have to decide then how we’ll implement that,” said Foreign Affairs Secretary Enrique Manalo.

The COC is a proposed framework designed to guide behaviour among countries with overlapping territorial and maritime claims in the South China Sea, particularly those in Southeast Asia and China.

Earlier, ASEAN Secretary-General Kao Kim Hourn expressed optimism that the long-awaited COC could be finalized by 2025.

The DFA said the negotiations continued to tackle the paragraphs of the draft COC, including the so-called milestone issues.

The next round of negotiations will take place in Malaysia later this year.

The Philippines will assume the ASEAN chairmanship in 2026.

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. earlier called on ASEAN member states to hasten the COC negotiations amid continued aggression and harassment in Philippine waters.

“In our view, there should be more urgency in the pace of the negotiations of the ASEAN-China Code of Conduct,” he said.

The President lamented that “the definition of a concept as basic as “self-restraint” does not yet enjoy consensus.”

“It is time that we tackle these milestone issues directly so we can make substantive progress moving forward…Parties must be earnestly open to seriously managing the differences and to reduce tensions,” Mr. Marcos added.

Editor’s Note: This is an updated article. Originally posted with the headline “Philippines asserts rights in latest ASEAN-China COC talks.”