Cambodia opposes to internationalize issue of South China Sea

United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (2nd L) shakes hands with Cambodia's Prime Minister Hun Sen (2nd R) as Hun's wife Bun Rany (L) and Ban's wife Ban Soon-taek pose for a photo during the welcome ceremony at the parliarment house in Phnom Penh October 27, 2010. According to spokespersons from the UN and Cambodia's Foreign Affairs Ministry, Ban is in the country for a three day official visit and is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Hun Sen as well as pay a visit to the UN-backed Khmer Rouge tribunal, genocide museum and a hospital.
REUTERS/Chor Sokunthea (CAMBODIA - Tags: POLITICS)

People's Daily Online
October 28, 2010

Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen has urged the parties concerned to strictly abide by the code of conduct in the South China Sea, warning against internationalizing the issue of South China Sea, a senior official said on Thursday.

Hun Sen told the visiting UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Wednesday that Cambodia wants to carry out the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea signed between the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China on Nov. 4, 2002, Khieu Kanharith, information minister and government spokesman, told reporters at the Phnom Penh International Airport.

Hun Sen stressed that the parties concerned should use existing mechanisms to solve the problem through consultation and should not try to put pressure on China allying with the United States or Japan, Khieu said.

"Cambodian government does not want to see any conflict on the issue of South China Sea," Khieu added.

The Declaration was signed at the end of the sixth China-ASEAN Summit (10+1) held in Phnom Penh in 2002 with an aim to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea.

In the declaration, China and ASEAN recognized the need to promote a peaceful, friendly and harmonious environment in the South China Sea for the enhancement of peace, stability, economic growth and prosperity in the region.

Ban Ki-moon, who paid a three-day official visit to Cambodia, left here on Thursday afternoon for Hanoi where he will attend the Asean-UN Summit.

Source:Xinhua