EU shares Asean concern over sea row

MANILA, Philippines - The European Union shares the serious concerns of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) over increasing tensions in the South China Sea.

In a statement at the 20th EU-ASEAN Ministerial Meeting in Brussels, the EU ministers said disputes must be resolved peacefully in accordance with universally recognized principles of international law, including the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the relevant standards and recommended practices of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).

“The EU ministers underscored the importance of maintaining peace, stability and prosperity in the region and promoting maritime security and safety, freedom of navigation and over-flight, unimpeded commerce, the exercise of self-restraint, including the use or threat to use of force,” read the statement.

The EU ministers said ASEAN ministers have called on all parties to the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) to fully and effectively implement it and to expeditiously work towards an early conclusion of the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea (COC).

The 20th EU-ASEAN Ministerial Meeting, under the theme of “Towards Strategic Partnership for Peace, Stability and Prosperity,” was held on Wednesday.

The meeting was co-chaired by Catherine Ashton, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and vice-president of the European Commission, and Pham Binh Minh, deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs of Vietnam, as country coordinator of ASEAN-EU Dialogue Relations.

It was attended by foreign ministers from EU member states and ASEAN, and the secretary-general of ASEAN.

The ASEAN ministers appreciated the EU’s initiatives and active participation in the efforts to foster the dialogue with ASEAN member states on maritime issues.