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In ASEAN-China meet, Marcos Jr. asserts need for South China Sea COC ‘anchored in law’

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Katrina Domingo, ABS-CBN News

<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Philippine Coast Guard vessel MRRV-4402 maneuvers as a Chinese Coast Guard vessel (CCGV) blocks from port side at a distance approximately 100 yards while the PCG vessel navigates within 12 nautical miles of Ayungin shoal in this photo taken last June 30. Photo courtesy of Philippine Coast Guard" src="https://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2023/news/07/08/20230705-ph-coast-guard-ccgv-ayungin-pcg4.jpg"/><figcaption>Philippine Coast Guard vessel MRRV-4402 maneuvers as a Chinese Coast Guard vessel (CCGV) blocks from port side at a distance approximately 100 yards while the PCG vessel navigates within 12 nautical miles of Ayungin shoal in this photo taken last June 30. Photo courtesy of Philippine Coast Guard</figcaption></figure></div> JAKARTA — President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday underscored the importance of producing a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea that is aligned with international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).Marcos Jr. made the statement during the ASEAN-China Summit, held a week after several countries scorned Beijing for releasing a 10-dash line map that claims nearly the entire South China Sea.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/09/01/23/marcos-says-ph-will-respond-on-chinas-10-dash-line">China&#x27;s 10-dash line? Marcos Jr says Philippines will &#x27;respond&#x27;</a></li></ul>“We must emphasize that practical cooperation in the maritime domain can only flourish with an enabling environment of regional peace, security, and stability, anchored in international law,” Marcos Jr. said in the meeting where Chinese Premier Li Qiang was present.“The Philippines therefore continues to uphold the primacy of the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea as the framework within which all activities in the seas and oceans are conducted,” he said.While the Philippines will continue to assert its rights in the South China Sea, Manila is committed to “reaffirm our commitment to the rule of law and peaceful settlement of disputes,” the Filipino leader said.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/08/31/23/code-of-conduct-in-s-china-sea-will-take-a-little-bit-longer-dfa">Completion of code of conduct in S. China Sea &#x27;will take a little bit longer&#x27;: DFA</a></li></ul>Marcos Jr. noted that “some progress was made” during discussions on the Single Draft Negotiating Text (SDNT) for the COC, which were held in Manila a few weeks ago.The SDNT serves as a sort of “wishlist” of key points that countries hope to include in the COC.The Philippine President said a preliminary review of the SDNT was made and that “milestone issues” were raised. He did not give further details about the discussions.“The early conclusion of an effective and substantive COC that is in accordance with international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS, remains the goal for ASEAN and for China,” Marcos Jr. said.“Universal multilateralism is our only recourse in an interconnected and interdependent world. This is in a context set against a backdrop of geopolitical challenges and macroeconomic fragilities,” he said.Marcos Jr. also underscored that it has been 20 years since China signed ASEAN’s Treaty of Amity and Cooperation, an agreement that guarantees commitment to “universal multilateralism and the rules-based international order.”In the same meeting, Chinese Premier Li Qiang downplayed China’s alleged aggression in the West Philippine Sea and claimed that “mutual trust” between ASEAN and China has “grown deeper.”“We have been committed to treating each other with sincerity and our political mutual trust has grown deeper,” Li said.“No matter how the international situation evolves, China and ASEAN have maintained close exchanges and communication, respecting each other’s development path,” he said.In August, several countries — including some ASEAN members — condemned China’s use of water cannons against Filipino resupply vessels sailing within the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone.While tensions in the South China Sea continue to loom, Marcos Jr. stressed the need to “reaffirm and build on our relations under the framework of the ASEAN-China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.”“Such cooperation can only help achieve our aspiration that once again ASEAN will be the epicentrum of growth,” the President said.“It is also our hope that we identify and leverage on complementarities between China’s Belt and Road Initiative and the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific,” he said.“To further expand mutual trade, efforts at enhancing ASEAN connectivity and supply chains must come to fruition,” he added.China earlier noted that it was ASEAN’s largest trading partner in the past 3 years, with bilateral trade amounting to $970 billion in 2022 alone.<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/YSlGVN88zxY?enablejsapi=1" width="560"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more News on <a href="https://www.iwanttfc.com/#!/browse/Genres/News/tag_id_genres/id_news" target="_blank">iWantTFC</a></div>

President Marcos Jr. underscored the importance of producing a Code of Conduct in the South China Sea that is aligned with international law. 

In ASEAN-China meet, Marcos Jr. asserts need for South China Sea COC ‘anchored in law’

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In ASEAN-China meet, Marcos Jr. asserts need for South China Sea COC ‘anchored in law’

Katrina Domingo,

ABS-CBN News

Published Sep 06, 2023 02:42 PM PHT

Read More:

code of conduct

Ferdinand Marcos Jr abroad

China

ASEAN

South China Sea

West Philippine Sea

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