Thursday’s summit meetings between leaders of Southeast Asia and Chinese Premier Li Qiang will focus on the contentious South China Sea, following months of worsening conflicts between Beijing’s vessels and Filipino and Vietnamese fisherman.
Following a day of inter-ASEAN negotiations overshadowed by the conflict in Myanmar, the ten-member organization will meet Li at their assembly in Vientiane.
Shigeru Ishiba, Japan’s incoming prime minister, and President
The ASEAN leaders on Wednesday repeated their longstanding calls for restraint and respect for international law, according to a draft summit chairman’s statement seen by AFP.
Nearly the whole South China Sea is under Beijing’s jurisdiction; it is a vital strategic channel that annually moves trillions of dollars’ worth of goods and services.
However, a number of ASEAN nations, including Brunei, Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines, all have conflicting claims to several tiny islands and reefs.
The encounter with Li follows a string of severe maritime skirmishes, especially with the Philippines near the Spratly Islands.
Philippine government vessels have been rammed, water-cannoned, and obstructed by the Chinese Coast Guard and other vessels.
China has for years sought to expand its presence in contested areas of the South China Sea, brushing aside an international ruling that its claim to most of the waterway has no legal basis.
It has built artificial islands armed with missile systems and runways for fighter jets, and deployed vessels that the Philippines says harass its ships and block its fishers.
As the EU tries to revitalize its failing attempts to put an end to the brutal conflict in Myanmar, which has China as its principal supporter, the talks with Li are also anticipated to cover that nation.
A draft statement from the summit chairman, seen by AFP, stated that ASEAN leaders “urged all parties involved to take concrete action to immediately halt indiscriminate violence” and denounced attacks on civilians.
More than three years ago, ASEAN and the Myanmar junta came to an agreement on a five-point peace plan, but the generals have disregarded it, and the bloc has not been able to get them to follow through.
Thousands have died and millions have been forced to flee their homes as a result of the turmoil that started with the coup in February 2021.
On Friday the leaders will be joined by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and others for the annual East Asia Summit.
