Fourth ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting

Vietnam is the rotating ASEAN Chair for 2010. The Fourth ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting has just been held in the Vietnamese capital, Hanoi. Before the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting convened in Hanoi, China has sent out a strong message to warn Vietnam and ASEAN that if Vietnam insisted on discussing the territorial dispute in South China Sea at the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting, China would not participate in the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus Partner Dialogue to be held later on.

The diplomatic circle in Hanoi was shocked that China would send out such a message to Vietnam and to ASEAN countries before the Fourth ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting convened in Hanoi.

China said that if Vietnam insisted on discussing issues relating to the South China Sea territorial disputes in any of the ASEAN meetings, including the ASEAN Defense Minister Meeting, China would not want to participate in ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus Partner Dialogue to be held later on.

Vietnamese Defense Minister Feng Guangqing who chaired the press conference said that the Fourth ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting did not address the issues relating to the territorial disputes on South China Sea. He was responded to China Press reporter's query on this issue.

Ever since Vietnam took over the ASEAN Chair this year, the relationship between Vietnam and China has turned into a stage of 'becoming tense internally but distancing apart externally.' Following China's sending out such a message to ASEAN, we can expect China's relationship with ASEAN over defense issue to tense up in the coming days.

Vietnam will host the ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus Partner Dialogue. This ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting Plus Dialogue is expected to be held in October this year. Eight countries have become ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting's dialogue partners. They are Australia, China, India, Japan, New Zealand, South Korea, Russia and the United States.

Has South China Sea Marine Territorial Dispute Become Internationalized?
Is response to China's accusation that Vietnam has 'internationalized 'or 'ASEAN-ized ' the South China Sea territorial dispute issue, a senior defense official from Vietnam defended that Vietnam was not the initiator to turn the South China Sea marine territorial dispute issue into internationalized or ASEAN-ized issue. He said: 'China should aware of the fact that marine territory and land territory are two different things. Marine territories are in the open seas and public waters. It will most frequently involve the strategic interests of many countries. As such, it is natural for the superpower to come forward and carry out strategic game. China should not hold the opinion that it was Vietnam that has internationalized the South China Sea territorial dispute issue.'

He stressed that bringing the South China Sea marine territorial right issue up at ASEAN meeting did not mean that ASEAN wanted to collectively confront China over the South China Sea territorial issue. Instead, ASEAN wanted to form a united front to discuss issues concerning regional security.

'We do not understand why someone would think that Vietnam wanted ASEAN to collectively confront China. Did Vietnam ever say that Vietnam want ASEAN to take collective military action on China over the South China Sea marine territorial conflict? Vietnam will adhere to the use of a harmonious approach to resolve this problem.'

Joint Simulation Exercise on Humanitarian Relief
Vietnamese Defense Minister Feng Guangqing who is also the chair for the 2010 ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting said ASEAN countries would, in the near future, carry out an 'ASEAN jointed simulation of humanitarian relief operations' exercise. This would allow ASEAN nations to have good preparation to cope with the threat of natural disasters.

In his opening remarks for the Fourth ASEAN Defense Ministers' Meeting, Vietnamese Defense Minister Feng Guangqing pointed that that since the inaugural of ADDM held in Malaysia in 2005, the defense and security cooperation of ASEAN countries has become more mature and closer as years went by.

He pointed out that 'having close and effective defense cooperation among ASEAN countries could create a stable region so that people in ASEAN can live in a peaceful, stable and sustainable regional environment.'

ASEAN Shares Common Interest
At this juncture a phenomenon was observed. This phenomenon is that among ASEAN nations there are indeed some ASEAN countries who feel that the South China Sea is of common interest to ASEAN as a whole. During the reporter's stay in Hanoi to cover the ADDM event and talked to some ASEAN nations' senior defense officials, these senior defense officials frankly acknowledged that as a matter of fact, they did share the common view that South China Sea was indeed a part of ASEAN. In addition, these officials also shared the view that South China Sea would also fall into the peripheral interest of countries near the ASEAN region. This is a very interesting finding because this phenomenon has reflected that the 'new ASEAN Spratly Islands' consensus is implicitly possible to form given more time. What is lacking is only an official declaration.

Basically, deep within us, we all agree that the dispute over marine sovereignty right in the South China Sea can shake the security and stability of ASEAN countries. This is because the South China Sea is located within the ASEAN sea waters. There is a political responsibility for all ASEAN nations to jointly safeguard the harmonious beauty of this part of the sea. China should understand that once the 'New ASEAN Spratly Islands' becomes an official consensus and exists as an institutionalized consensus; this shared solidarity on South China Sea does not mean that ASEAN is trying to challenge China.

Before leaving Hanoi, the writer of this report ponders upon this question: 'When a harmonious and united ASEAN body tries to use a harmony voice to discuss with China over the marine territorial dispute in South China Sea, what sort of threat can ASEAN pose to China? Why should China always be so resistant not wanting to talk about this issue? Why cannot China adopt a broad mindset to hear the harmonious voice of ASEAN?