US, China square off over South China Sea

By Bradley Klapper 

From: AAP and the Herald Sun, Australia

July 12, 2012

THE Obama administration is pressing China to accept a code of conduct for resolving territorial disputes in the resource-rich South China Sea.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton will on Thursday meet with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi on the sidelines of the annual conference of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

China claims almost the entire area and has created a new city to administer it, sparking deep concern from rival claimants.

The sea hosts about a third of the world's cargo traffic, has rich fishing grounds and is believed to store vast oil and gas reserves.

"The United States has no territorial claims there and we do not take sides in disputes about territorial or maritime boundaries," Clinton told foreign ministers gathered in Cambodia's capital.

"But we do have an interest in freedom of navigation, the maintenance of peace and stability, respect for international law and unimpeded lawful commerce in the South China Sea."

Asian countries should "work collaboratively and diplomatically to resolve disputes without coercion, without intimidation, without threats and without use of force", Clinton added.

ASEAN's 10 members announced earlier this week that they had drafted a set of rules governing maritime rights and navigation, and procedures for when governments disagree.

They were presenting their proposal to China at this week's conference, but China is not a member of the group and has not agreed to anything.

The difficult diplomacy ahead could be a major test of the Obama administration's efforts to "pivot" American power towards the world's most populous continent.

Speaking out on the subject already has helped the US deepen ties with Vietnam, and relations are warming with other governments in the region.

But countless meetings between US and Chinese officials have not led to progress on a lasting solution.

Various longstanding disputes among China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei involve the area's busy sea lanes, and many observers fear the complicated web of disputes could spark a violent conflict.

The stand-off between China and the Philippines in the Scarborough Shoal off the northwestern Philippines began in April when the Philippines accused Chinese fishermen of poaching in its exclusive economic zone, including the shoal.

During the tensions, both sides sent government ships to the area although both had since withdrawn them.