Asean defense ministers renew push for code of conduct
The defense ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) member-states pushed for a binding Code of Conduct (CoC) for the South China Sea and called for self-restraint in activities that would escalate tensions in the disputed waters.
In a joint declaration after meeting in Vientiane, Laos, on Thursday, Asean defense chiefs renewed their commitment to maintain the South China Sea “as a sea of peace, stability, and prosperity” through the 2022 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.
But China has continued to oppose a binding code of conduct in the disputed waters since 2002, years before China’s self-declared “nine-dash line” in the area.
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The defense chiefs were in Vientiane for the 18th Asean Defense Ministers’ Meeting.
The defense ministers also emphasized the need for the “early conclusion of an effective and substantive” CoC in the South China Sea in accordance with international law.
