The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) Foreign Ministerial Meeting is going on in Bali, Indonesia. This Meeting plans to come out with a new Code of Conduct in the South China Sea. The intention of it is to resolve the territorial dispute over the islands in the South China Sea. As the territorial dispute over the islands in the South China Sea island is widespread and complex; adding to the fact that US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and China's Foreign Affairs Minister Yang Jiechi will also be attending the ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF) to be held in Bali on 23 July, one can expect the issue of territorial dispute between China and ASEAN countries to be raised and debated. In this regard, this round of ASEAN Ministerial Meeting which has already drawn widespread attention has indeed carried with it a significant meaning for all concerned countries.
Interference of External Forces
Originally, the plan and hope for this round of ASEAN Foreign Ministerial Meeting was for ASEAN to search a right direction and path as well as to look for the role that ASEAN should play in the international arena as a regional grouping. But unexpectedly, in recent months, the territorial dispute over the islands in the South China Sea suddenly emerged with the interference of external forces. There were even incidents whereby the confronting countries involved in the conflict had the tendency to resolve the territorial dispute between them by military force. Yet such a development has in turn led ASEAN member countries to, without any intent, produce a certain degree of consensus. In the first place, due to the special geographical location of the South China Sea, countries surrounding this patch of regional water which includes China, the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan have put forward different interpretation of claims pertaining to the sovereignty of the islands in the South China Sea.
The interpretations by different countries over the islands ownership have in turn led to overlapping of claims among them. According to the principles of the Law of the Sea, the overlapping maritime claimants can in fact be resolved through negotiation and demarcation of maritime zone. However, in the case of the South China Sea, it is not easy for the demarcation of territorial waters to come out with any kind of good arrangement. This is because the numbers of main claimant bodies involved in the maritime territorial dispute in the South China Sea are quite a lot. Moreover, the level of overlapping claim of islands and maritime waters by these countries are also varied in different degrees or levels.
Maritime Demarcation Issue
Second, if countries intend to use some kind of demarcation agreement to resolve maritime conflict it will usually mean that the involved countries are willing to more or less make certain degree of mutual concessions or compromise on how the maritime demarcation should be settled. However, between China and Vietnam and between China and the Philippines and even between China and Malaysia, each and every country involved in the South China Sea island dispute does not show any obvious signs of compromise. Some involved countries have even deployed military vessels to protect their claimed territorial islands. As such, at this round of ASEAN Foreign Ministerial Meeting, the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea that ASEAN member countries intend to come out is but a framework to vigorously promote the idea of using negotiation as means to resolve the territorial dispute and conflict. Such a proposal is bound to heighten the territorial dispute between China and ASEAN countries.
Territorial and Jurisdictional Dispute
If ASEAN member countries come out with the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea unilaterally among themselves, what can happen during the following ASEAN Regional Forum is the possibility for China to engage in aggressive debating war with the Philippines and also with Vietnam. In the past, at the meeting held between China and ASEAN member countries to discuss "how to handle the potential conflict in the South China Sea", China and ASEAN did issue a joint statement that said: "In the territorial claim regions, relevant countries should consider the possibility to adopt a mutually beneficial cooperation framework to resolve the territorial dispute in the South China Sea."
The statement also said that "military force should not be used to resolve the territorial and jurisdictional dispute in the South China Sea." When such a proposal was jointly announced by both China and ASEAN during that period, the use of words in the announcement was filled with peaceful compromised terms. It was considered then that China and ASEAN countries have finally attained positive and fruitful result deemed useful to defuse the potential conflicts in the South China Sea. But in fact, such a joint declaration does not carry with it any legal binding. Moreover, the conclusion of that meeting between China and ASEAN also did not really touch on the actions and behaviors already taken by some involved countries which have gone ahead to take unilateral action to develop the islands which they claimed ownership. Such a joint declaration by China ASEAN then has now become a time bomb affecting the peace and security in the South China Sea.
Concept of Joint Development
So far, the concept of joint development of the resources in the South China Sea is still worthy of this region's effort to promote further. Participants of the ASEAN Foreign Minister Meeting held in Bali should offer a variety of concrete and feasible solutions on this joint development of resources concept and to encourage all the relevant countries building more consensus on this idea. Furthermore, even all relevant countries have the desire to implement the concept of joint development of resources in the South China Sea; they should still approach the planning and consideration of it from different angles and perspectives. This is because the sea area of the South China Sea is quite vast and the claims as expressed by involved countries are all different. As such, at this very moment, it can still be a bit more difficult to streamline the whole South China Sea region as one unified common development zone which can allow the involved countries to proceed and carry out full-fledge cooperation to jointly develop the resources there. However, if through some kind of international cooperation, China and all the involved ASEAN countries can come out with different demarcation zones, then it is more feasible for involved countries to engage in joint development of resource projects in the South China Sea region. The scope of cooperation can begin with small point and later on expand to larger surface. Depending on the different maritime zones in the South China Sea, the main cooperation bodies can carry out joint resource development projects either using bilateral or multilateral approach as warranted. In addition, countries in the South China Sea can also specify the type of marine resources such as oil and gas for the involved countries to carry out specific joint cooperation development projects.
Of note is that after the United States made a deliberated attempt to intervene in the South China Sea dispute, ASEAN countries are shrouded in the shadow of its powerful neighbor. The main reason for the United States to forcefully making its presence in wanting to get involved in the South China Sea oil exploration activities is that the United States wants to use such an approach to threaten the Beijing authority. Its intention is to force China and Vietnam as well as China and the United States to move to the negotiating table. This is also because when the US and Canadian companies, which have traditional cooperation ties with these ASEAN countries overheard that the United States might not rule out the possibility to use force in the South China Sea, these companies might be encouraged to take bold step to engage in joint resource development projects with Vietnam and the in the South China Sea knowing that they have the subtle backing coming from the United States. In this regard, when the United States deploys its military supremacy chips in the South China Sea, such chips can at least be used for the US companies to get involved in the joint resource development projects with countries in the South China Sea region. By so doing, the United States will not end up with not getting any concrete benefits from it.
Of late, the defensive actions taken by the Philippines and Vietnam over their respective territorial rights for islands in the South China Sea have become more and more aggressive. This especially so when the Manila Government has now included the Karajan Islands in the South China Sea as its administration district and considered the Islands as an integral part of the Philippine territory . Under such delicate circumstances when countries involved in the territorial dispute in the South China Sea islands have continued to insist on their respective claims for their islands in the South China Sea, even the situation between China and the Philippines will not immediately develop into a sword crossing confrontation, we trust Vietnam will not keep its silence for long.
Resolving Controversial Issues
The theme of the ASEAN Foreign Ministerial Meeting held on 21 July should go more specific into the controversial issues pertaining to the South China Sea. And China's "just in time" action will definitely trigger the old issues pertaining to the unilateral development of islands by some countries surrounding the South China Sea. There is no way for these old problems to avoid being discussed. To resolve the conflict of interest in the South China Sea once and for all, there is a possibility that some ASEAN countries must give the suggestion for ASEAN to sign an Convention with Beijing on the joint development of resources in the South China Sea, or to work on the areas in the South China Sea that can carry out joint development projects. Yet once the countries involved begin to touch on the real issues, quarrels and fights over the real issues can even be more serious than before. In the end, there is no end to the fights and quarrels over the territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
Interference of External Forces
Originally, the plan and hope for this round of ASEAN Foreign Ministerial Meeting was for ASEAN to search a right direction and path as well as to look for the role that ASEAN should play in the international arena as a regional grouping. But unexpectedly, in recent months, the territorial dispute over the islands in the South China Sea suddenly emerged with the interference of external forces. There were even incidents whereby the confronting countries involved in the conflict had the tendency to resolve the territorial dispute between them by military force. Yet such a development has in turn led ASEAN member countries to, without any intent, produce a certain degree of consensus. In the first place, due to the special geographical location of the South China Sea, countries surrounding this patch of regional water which includes China, the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan have put forward different interpretation of claims pertaining to the sovereignty of the islands in the South China Sea.
The interpretations by different countries over the islands ownership have in turn led to overlapping of claims among them. According to the principles of the Law of the Sea, the overlapping maritime claimants can in fact be resolved through negotiation and demarcation of maritime zone. However, in the case of the South China Sea, it is not easy for the demarcation of territorial waters to come out with any kind of good arrangement. This is because the numbers of main claimant bodies involved in the maritime territorial dispute in the South China Sea are quite a lot. Moreover, the level of overlapping claim of islands and maritime waters by these countries are also varied in different degrees or levels.
Maritime Demarcation Issue
Second, if countries intend to use some kind of demarcation agreement to resolve maritime conflict it will usually mean that the involved countries are willing to more or less make certain degree of mutual concessions or compromise on how the maritime demarcation should be settled. However, between China and Vietnam and between China and the Philippines and even between China and Malaysia, each and every country involved in the South China Sea island dispute does not show any obvious signs of compromise. Some involved countries have even deployed military vessels to protect their claimed territorial islands. As such, at this round of ASEAN Foreign Ministerial Meeting, the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea that ASEAN member countries intend to come out is but a framework to vigorously promote the idea of using negotiation as means to resolve the territorial dispute and conflict. Such a proposal is bound to heighten the territorial dispute between China and ASEAN countries.
Territorial and Jurisdictional Dispute
If ASEAN member countries come out with the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea unilaterally among themselves, what can happen during the following ASEAN Regional Forum is the possibility for China to engage in aggressive debating war with the Philippines and also with Vietnam. In the past, at the meeting held between China and ASEAN member countries to discuss "how to handle the potential conflict in the South China Sea", China and ASEAN did issue a joint statement that said: "In the territorial claim regions, relevant countries should consider the possibility to adopt a mutually beneficial cooperation framework to resolve the territorial dispute in the South China Sea."
The statement also said that "military force should not be used to resolve the territorial and jurisdictional dispute in the South China Sea." When such a proposal was jointly announced by both China and ASEAN during that period, the use of words in the announcement was filled with peaceful compromised terms. It was considered then that China and ASEAN countries have finally attained positive and fruitful result deemed useful to defuse the potential conflicts in the South China Sea. But in fact, such a joint declaration does not carry with it any legal binding. Moreover, the conclusion of that meeting between China and ASEAN also did not really touch on the actions and behaviors already taken by some involved countries which have gone ahead to take unilateral action to develop the islands which they claimed ownership. Such a joint declaration by China ASEAN then has now become a time bomb affecting the peace and security in the South China Sea.
Concept of Joint Development
So far, the concept of joint development of the resources in the South China Sea is still worthy of this region's effort to promote further. Participants of the ASEAN Foreign Minister Meeting held in Bali should offer a variety of concrete and feasible solutions on this joint development of resources concept and to encourage all the relevant countries building more consensus on this idea. Furthermore, even all relevant countries have the desire to implement the concept of joint development of resources in the South China Sea; they should still approach the planning and consideration of it from different angles and perspectives. This is because the sea area of the South China Sea is quite vast and the claims as expressed by involved countries are all different. As such, at this very moment, it can still be a bit more difficult to streamline the whole South China Sea region as one unified common development zone which can allow the involved countries to proceed and carry out full-fledge cooperation to jointly develop the resources there. However, if through some kind of international cooperation, China and all the involved ASEAN countries can come out with different demarcation zones, then it is more feasible for involved countries to engage in joint development of resource projects in the South China Sea region. The scope of cooperation can begin with small point and later on expand to larger surface. Depending on the different maritime zones in the South China Sea, the main cooperation bodies can carry out joint resource development projects either using bilateral or multilateral approach as warranted. In addition, countries in the South China Sea can also specify the type of marine resources such as oil and gas for the involved countries to carry out specific joint cooperation development projects.
Of note is that after the United States made a deliberated attempt to intervene in the South China Sea dispute, ASEAN countries are shrouded in the shadow of its powerful neighbor. The main reason for the United States to forcefully making its presence in wanting to get involved in the South China Sea oil exploration activities is that the United States wants to use such an approach to threaten the Beijing authority. Its intention is to force China and Vietnam as well as China and the United States to move to the negotiating table. This is also because when the US and Canadian companies, which have traditional cooperation ties with these ASEAN countries overheard that the United States might not rule out the possibility to use force in the South China Sea, these companies might be encouraged to take bold step to engage in joint resource development projects with Vietnam and the in the South China Sea knowing that they have the subtle backing coming from the United States. In this regard, when the United States deploys its military supremacy chips in the South China Sea, such chips can at least be used for the US companies to get involved in the joint resource development projects with countries in the South China Sea region. By so doing, the United States will not end up with not getting any concrete benefits from it.
Of late, the defensive actions taken by the Philippines and Vietnam over their respective territorial rights for islands in the South China Sea have become more and more aggressive. This especially so when the Manila Government has now included the Karajan Islands in the South China Sea as its administration district and considered the Islands as an integral part of the Philippine territory . Under such delicate circumstances when countries involved in the territorial dispute in the South China Sea islands have continued to insist on their respective claims for their islands in the South China Sea, even the situation between China and the Philippines will not immediately develop into a sword crossing confrontation, we trust Vietnam will not keep its silence for long.
Resolving Controversial Issues
The theme of the ASEAN Foreign Ministerial Meeting held on 21 July should go more specific into the controversial issues pertaining to the South China Sea. And China's "just in time" action will definitely trigger the old issues pertaining to the unilateral development of islands by some countries surrounding the South China Sea. There is no way for these old problems to avoid being discussed. To resolve the conflict of interest in the South China Sea once and for all, there is a possibility that some ASEAN countries must give the suggestion for ASEAN to sign an Convention with Beijing on the joint development of resources in the South China Sea, or to work on the areas in the South China Sea that can carry out joint development projects. Yet once the countries involved begin to touch on the real issues, quarrels and fights over the real issues can even be more serious than before. In the end, there is no end to the fights and quarrels over the territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
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