Spratlys divide China, ASEAN

Spratlys divide China, ASEAN

Following China's surprise bold announcement to the ASEAN
foreign ministers in Brunei earlier this month, that it would
follow the convention in the UN Law of the Sea over the Spratlys,
Beijing has further offered an olive branch to the Philippines.

Last week, the two countries agreed to set up expert panels to
discuss the legal bases for their conflicting claims in the South
China Sea.

The two sides also agreed on the principals of a "code of
conduct" in the region, the shape and details of which were to be
discussed further.

The code would act as a guide, to peaceful approaches, to the
question of building confidence and trust.

The discussion on the legal basis for the claims would also
take into account international law and the UN convention on the
Law of the Sea.

The two sides also agreed to look into modes of cooperation in
the region, in order to promote confidence and preserve
stability.

Mischief Reef in the Spratlys was occupied by China earlier
this year.

China maintained that the structures built by them on the reef
were for peaceful purposes, while the Philippines emphasized they
were a source of "deep concern for the people of the Philippines
because of its proximity to the province of Palawan and because
it constituted a change in the situation in the South China Sea."

The South China Sea dispute is clearly one of the most
difficult issues between China and ASEAN, and it so happens that
at this point Beijing's relations with the U.S. have deteriorated
to the lowest level.

But the Chinese have yet to discard their traditional claims
of sovereignty, that "we were there long before others and this
part of the territory of the sea belongs to us..."

Last week's announcement was a major change but it does not
lead to a completely new direction. The consolation is that the
Chinese would like to consider international law in settling the
Spratlys dispute.

Let us hope this is the beginning of a more tame China with
regards to disputes in the South China Sea.

-- The Nation, Bangkok