Friday, 13 July 2012
Cheang Sokha and David Boyle
Phnom Penh Post 
US
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks at a press conference
yesterday after the 19th ASEAN Regional Forum Foreign Ministers Retreat,
at the Council of Ministers in Phnom Penh. Photograph: Hong
Menea/Phnom Penh Post
‘Utterly irresponsible” and “extremely
disappointing” is how Indonesia’s foreign minister described ASEAN’s
failure yesterday to agree to the terms for a Code of Conduct on the
hotly disputed South China Sea.
China effectively claims all of
the resource rich waters, and this week’s ASEAN summit was supposed to
be a chance for member countries to present the burgeoning superpower
with the terms of a CoC guiding the pursuit of their various claims.
A
frustrated Marty Natalegawa, Indonesia’s foreign minister, told
reporters late yesterday they should ask the “obvious” countries why
ASEAN had failed to speak with one voice and agree to a common
statement, or final communiqué.
“You ask the participants why it
is they are not able to speak with one voice, whether it is the
Philippines, whether it is the chair, Cambodia, whoever it is,” he said.
“But I think it is utterly irresponsible that we cannot come up
with a common statement on the South China Sea, this is a time when
ASEAN should be seen to be acting as one.”
Four ASEAN nations
including Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam, have claims over the South
China Sea, but a recent flare up of the Philippines dispute with China
over a group of islands known as the Scarborough Shoal has been the
dominant point of tension during this week’s summit.
The
Philippines has accused China of reneging on a mutual agreement – which
the ASEAN nation honoured – to withdraw vessels from the disputed
territory on June 15.
Philippines Foreign Minister Albert Del
Rosario also left the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) plenary session
frustrated, refusing to speak to reporters. Instead, he handed them a
written statement slamming the “aggressive infringement” of a “powerful
country” into the disputed territory.
“If left unchecked, the
increasing tensions [sic] that is being generated in the process could
further escalate into physical hostilities which no one wants,” the
statement read.
In a clear reference to China, the statement accused an ARF
“member state” of duplicity, intimidation, threats and the use of force.
On her second day at ASEAN, US Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton said she would not weigh into the dispute, but said at a press
conference the US had seen some “worrisome instances of economic
coercion and the problematic use of military and government vessels in
connection with disputes among fishermen”.
“We believe the
nations of the regions should work collaboratively and diplomatically to
resolve disputes without coercion, without intimidation, without
threats and certainly without the use of force,” she told reporters.
Although
the US took no side in the dispute, it had “a fundamental interest in
freedom of navigation, the maintenance of peace and stability, respect
for international law and unimpeded lawful commerce”, Clinton said.
Chinese
Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi said little outside of closed doors during
this week’s summit, but according to a statement posted on the Chinese
embassy’s website on Wednesday, Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying said
China and ASEAN had agreed to continue implementing the decade-old,
non-binding Declaration of Conduct on the disputed waters.
China hoped to “be able to start a discussion on the CoC when conditions are ripe”, the statement read.
ASEAN
Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan downplayed the failure of the 10 ASEAN
member states to reach consensus on the CoC, calling it a “hiccup”.
“They
are still trying, they have not given up hope, but it takes a bit of
effort – heavy lifting,” he said, adding that the tone of yesterday’s
meeting had been candid and had cleared the air.
“Now we have to
digest all of those things and try to find our way through the
difficult waters, around the shoals . . . around the
rocks.”
At the last ASEAN summit in April, even though debate
raged as to whether the South China Sea was even on the agenda, the
issue dominated discussions.
Cambodian officials have been highly reluctant to discuss the issue this time around.
To contact the reporters on this story: Cheang Sokha at sokha.cheang@phnompenhpost.com
David Boyle at david.boyle@phnompenhpost.com
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