RANCHO MIRAGE, California—President Benigno S. Aquino III underscored the importance of upholding the rule of law in resolving the territorial disputes in the South China Sea on the first day of the US-Asean Leaders Summit here.
US President Barack Obama was hosting the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations for a special summit at Sunnylands, the historic Annenberg estate where Obama held a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in June 2013.
The US-Asean Summit began Monday, Feb. 15. (California is 16 hours behind Manila.)
“The leaders exchanged views during a retreat that focused on promoting regional prosperity through innovation and entrepreneurship and continued their discussions over a working dinner,” Communications Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. said, quoting the Department of Foreign Affairs on the highlights of the first day of the summit.
Photo credit: Malacañang Photo Bureau
At the working dinner where the main topic was the regional strategic outlook, Coloma said President Aquino “spoke on the importance of upholding the rule of law and peaceful resolution of disputes in the region.”
In their discussions, Coloma said Obama and the Asean leaders expressed “collective concern over continued militarization in the South China Sea, which they recognized as a core issue in region.”
“There was also concern expressed over unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the region through island building, construction activities and test flights. In this regard, the crucial importance of freedom of navigation and overflight was highlighted,” he said.
The importance of Asean solidarity and centrality and close cooperation and consultation in upholding regional peace and stability was also emphasized during their discussions, Coloma said.
“It was established that Asean should speak with one voice to ensure that all parties modify their behavior to conform with the rule of law and ensure the preservation of status quo,” he said.
“It was noted that this remains crucial for promoting respect for international law and norms for the management of regional tensions and in building regional security architecture,” he added.
China is asserting ownership of almost the whole South China Sea. The Philippines, Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam, as well as Taiwan, also have overlapping claims in the disputed area.
Also during the US-Asean meeting, Coloma said the seriousness of the North Korean issue was discussed, as well as the developments in the Middle East, the Syrian conflict and efforts to combat violent extremism.
“The leaders discussed ways to strengthen protection against digital recruitment of terrorism. They also expressed their strong views that the building of nuclear arsenal in North Korea is destabilizing and called for North Korea to denuclearize,” he said.
Moreover, Coloma said Obama and the Asean leaders were confident of closer Asean-US cooperation in areas of common endeavor, such as maritime security, economic engagement and people-to-people ties.
In his brief remarks at the opening of the US-Asean Leaders Summit, Obama described the landmark gathering on US soil as a reflection of his commitment to a strong and enduring partnership with Southeast Asian nations.
This is the first time that the leaders of Asean countries are meeting in the United States. The aim of the summit was to deepen US engagement with Southeast Asian nations.
The Asean, established in August 1967, groups Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
On Tuesday, Obama announced a package of measures designed to boost Southeast Asian economies, betting that the fast-growing region can be an ever more important trade partner.
The plan will establish three economic offices—in Jakarta, Bangkok and Singapore—“to better coordinate our economic engagement and connect more of our entrepreneurs, investors and businesses with each other.”
The White House sees the 10 nations of the Asean as an emerging regional counterweight to China’s regional dominance.
Collectively, the countries are the fourth-largest trading partner for the United States.
According to White House figures, “two-way trade in goods and services has tripled since the 1990s, topping $254 billion in 2014,” supporting around half a million US jobs.
“We have an increasingly deep and broad economic relationship with Asean,” said US ambassador to Asean Nina Hachigian.
While Southeast Asian economies are youthful and fast-growing, many sectors remain the under the control of government or special interests.
But countries like Indonesia are beginning to open up. Its president Joko Widodo recently announced steps to open the economy to foreign investment that were welcomed in Washington.
The new “US-Asean Connect” package will include technical advice on how countries like Indonesia and the Philippines can prepare to join the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a vast Pacific-wide trade deal that is in the process of being ratified.
“We’ve launched a new effort to help all Asean countries understand the key elements of TPP as well as the reforms that could eventually lead to them joining,” Obama said.
Other measures will focus on improving trade ties in the communications and infrastructure sectors among others, streamlining current government programs.
It will also address the power sector, an area where China has been especially active, building dams along the upper Mekong.