China, ASEAN talks key for sea

A foreign ministers' meeting on Tuesday between China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will be a good opportunity to dispel doubts about China and to ease tension in the South China Sea, experts said.

Beijing is ready to discuss further promoting and upgrading China-ASEAN cooperation and "jointly ensuring peace and stability in the South China Sea", Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said on Monday during a briefing on the meeting.

At the meeting, to be held in Yuxi, in Southwest China's Yunnan province (which borders Laos, Vietnam and Myanmar), China is looking for an in-depth exchange of views on topics including China-ASEAN ties and fully implementing the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, Lu said.

The declaration is a key document, signed by China and the 10 ASEAN member countries in 2002, that endorses political settlement of maritime disputes.

The 11 countries held their 12th senior officials meeting on fully implementing the declaration on June 9 in Hanoi, Vietnam.

Jia Duqiang, a senior researcher on Southeast Asian studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the meeting will be a good opportunity for China and the ASEAN countries to have productive and candid discussion.

Jia said the discussions inevitably will consider the potential impact of the Philippines' arbitration case against China on the sea issue.

"The ASEAN countries are worried that the peace and stability of the whole region will be at stake," Jia said.

This year marks the 25th anniversary of dialogue between China and ASEAN. A commemorative summit will be held in September, and Tuesday's meeting will help prepare for it, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu said.

The meeting is expected to show "emphasis and expectations by both sides on advancing China-ASEAN cooperation", he said.

Luo Yuan, a researcher at the Chinese People's Liberation Army's Academy of Military Science, said the South China Sea issue is "not between China and all the ASEAN countries".

He said some ASEAN members not directly involved in the issue "have displayed their willingness to downplay the disputes" at recent international events.

Speaking in Washington on June 9, Singaporean Minister of Foreign Affairs Vivian Balakrishnan said that small countries like Singapore hope China and the US "would be able to work around the differences, compete but keep the competition within reasonable limits, cooperate effectively and above all, avoid conflicts".

"Quite frankly, we do not want to be forced to make immediate choices. And what I will plead to the Chinese as well as to the Americans is to avoid a zero-sum mentality," he said.

Many in China believe that the US involvement in the disputes over the South China Sea has complicated the situation. Some in the US are not happy about the prospect that Philippines President-elect Rodridgo Duterte might pursue a bilateral consultation with China regarding the maritime disputes, something China has sought for some time.

Contact the writer at zhangyunbi@chinadaily.com.cn