Asserting Asean presence in SCS
Another summit, another missed opportunity.
That was one regretful outcome of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit, held last week in Cebu under this year’s chairship of the Philippines, as far as concluding the long-delayed Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea (SCS) is concerned.
It had been 23 years since Asean members and China signed the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the SCS on Nov. 4, 2002, expressing their commitment to the security and peaceful resolution of territorial disputes in the region. Negotiations for a COC, which would operationalize the agreement, had been in the works for decades, but achieving the goal remains elusive. It was certainly not for lack of trying, but China’s persistent claim of ownership over almost the entire SCS and its political and economic influence over the Asean members have cast a barrier to the adoption of an acceptable and binding code.
To his credit, President Marcos put that goal back on the agenda of the 48th Asean Summit and Related Meetings as this year’s chair of the 11-member regional bloc. But the Middle East war, which severely impacted the oil-importing Asean nations, took much of the leaders’ attention away from the long-simmering conflict in their own backyard.
United and firm stand
At the end of the Asean heads’ retreat in Cebu, they vowed to “ENDEAVOUR to conclude the negotiation of an effective and substantive Code of Conduct in the South China Sea in accordance with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS);…” They called for the full use of guidelines endorsed by the foreign ministers of Asean and China in 2023 to “expedite the conclusion” of the COC.
Mr. Marcos’ frustration was palpable when he addressed the matter in a press conference after the summit. “So, again, that is one of our aspirations as chair of Asean for 2026, that we find at the end of the year, that we actually have a code of conduct,” the President said, adding that the situation in the SCS has become “more unreadable.” All the Asean members, he said, have “a different approach when it comes to the People’s Republic (of China)” and so he could not answer if he was optimistic that the target would be achieved this year.
Despite this impasse, the Asean issued a united and firm stand against aggression in the SCS through a separate Asean Leaders’ Declaration on Maritime Cooperation, in which they reaffirmed “our shared commitment to maintaining and promoting peace, security, stability, and prosperity in the region, as well as to the peaceful resolution of disputes, including full respect for legal and diplomatic processes, without resorting to the threat or use of force, in accordance with international law, including the 1982 (Unclos).”
Philippine proposal
Though the declaration did not mention China, as expected due to Asean’s traditional neutrality and noninterference policy, it was nevertheless a strong message against Beijing’s actions in the SCS areas being claimed by several Asean nations, including the Philippines.
More importantly, the Asean leaders adopted a Philippine proposal to establish an Asean Maritime Center (AMC) that would consolidate the region’s efforts to ensure respect for territorial rights under Unclos and the peaceful resolution of maritime claims, as well as to secure freedom of navigation and overflight in the SCS.
“The idea of the maritime center is to make a cohesive organization that will put together all the efforts of all the different countries, Asean and even other countries outside of Asean, who have an interest [in peace in the SCS],” Mr. Marcos said. “There was a very wide consensus amongst members on the things that need to be done and how we need to do it. Since we proposed the idea, we are offering the Philippines to be the home of that center,” he added. The nitty-gritty of the center, however, will still be threshed out.
Not a move against China
The President was careful to stress that the setting up of the AMC was not a move against China. “What we are looking for, or what is the ultimate reason for having this maritime center, is not to confront or not to somehow push back on any single force or any single country,” he said.
Still, having the AMC would be another victory for the Philippines in its battle against persistent incursions in the West Philippine Sea following the 2016 arbitral ruling it won against China. In the absence of the COC, the Asean center–if given enough powers and resources to monitor movements in the SCS– could potentially help deter more aggressive actions by China against its smaller neighbors.
It is high time for Asean to assert its authority and exercise its responsibility to keep the peace in the SCS, which provides resources and livelihood for its 700 million population while being a vital shipping route for global trade. By establishing the AMC, the Asean will have an important presence to ensure that peace and security reign in the SCS.
