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| Cambodia's Foreign Minister Hor Namhong addresses the closing ceremony of the 45th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in Phnom Penh July 13, 2012. REUTERS/Samrang Pring |
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| Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa (C) chats with ASEAN Secretary-General Surin Pitsuwan (L) near Laos Foreign Minister Thongloun Sisulith (R) and Cambodia's Foreign Minister Hor Namhong (2nd L) before the closing ceremony of the 45th ASEAN Foreign Ministers Meeting in Phnom Penh July 13, 2012. REUTERS/Samrang Pring |
By Prak Chan Thul and Stuart Grudgings
Reuters – july , 13,2012
The Philippines said it took "strong exception" to Cambodia's statement that the non-issuance of a communique was due to "bilateral conflict between some ASEAN member states and a neighboring country".
PHNOM PENH (Reuters) - A Southeast Asian regional summit ended in acrimony on Friday over China's assertive role in the strategic South China Sea, failing to agree on a concluding joint statement for the first time in its 45-year history.
Divisions between the 10 countries in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) follow a rise in incidents of naval brinkmanship involving Chinese vessels in the oil-rich waters that has sparked fears of a military clash.
The Philippines said it "deplores" ASEAN's failure to address the worsening row, and criticized Cambodia -- a close ally of China -- for its handling of the issue during the foreign ministers' meeting.
Without mentioning China, Philippine Foreign Minister Albert del Rosario told a news conference in Manila that one "member state's" intrusions into Philippine territory were part of a "creeping imposition" of its claim over the entire South China Sea and were raising the risk of a conflict.
The South China Sea has become Asia's biggest potential military flashpoint as Beijing's sovereignty claim over a huge, looping area has set it against Vietnam and the Philippines as the three countries race to tap possibly huge oil reserves.
The stakes have risen as the U.S. military shifts its attention and resources back to Asia, emboldening its long-time ally the Philippines and former foe Vietnam to take a bolder stance against Beijing.
ASEAN's divisions are an ominous sign for a bloc that wants to create a regional economic community by 2015 that would bring down barriers in trade, labor and financial markets -- partly to compete with China for investment.
China is a member of the East Asian Summit and ASEAN Regional Forum which also held meetings in Cambodia.
"The increasing assertion by this member state over the disputed and non-disputed areas poses a threat to the peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region," del Rosario said.
"If left unchecked, the increasing tension that is being generated in the process could further escalate into physical hostilities which no one wants."
China has been accused of using its heavy influence over summit chair Cambodia and several other ASEAN members to block regional-level discussions on the issue and attempts to agree a binding maritime Code of Conduct to manage the dispute.
The Philippines said it took "strong exception" to Cambodia's statement that the non-issuance of a communique was due to "bilateral conflict between some ASEAN member states and a neighboring country".
It said it had only requested that the communique mention the recent standoff between Chinese and Philippine ships at the Scarborough Shoal, a horseshoe-shaped reef in waters that both countries claim.
Indonesia, the biggest economy in Southeast Asia, played down the rift. "No doubt the South China Sea at the moment is a difficult issue but I'm sure ASEAN will find ways and means to be able to address that problem," Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa told Reuters.
But the rising tensions were underlined on Friday when the Chinese navy said that one of its frigates had run aground on Half Moon Shoal, about 90 nautical miles off the western Philippine island of Palawan.
China said it was conducting a rescue mission and the Philippines said it was sending "assets" to the area to investigate and provide assistance if needed.
"That's a very strategic location to strengthen their claim over the Reed Bank, they are getting closer to our territory, putting one foot inside our fence," one military official told Reuters.
The Philippines scrambled aircraft and ships to the Reed Bank area last year after Chinese navy ships threatened to ram a Philippine survey ship.
"COMBAT READY"
China said last month it had begun "combat-ready" patrols in waters it said were under its control in the South China Sea, after saying it "vehemently opposed" a Vietnamese law asserting sovereignty over the Paracel and Spratly islands.
Philippine President Benigno Aquino told Reuters in an interview last week that he may ask the United States to deploy spy planes to monitor the disputed waters.
China, whose trade and investment ties with Cambodia have surged in recent years, has warned that "external forces" should not get involved in the dispute, which it says should only be discussed bilaterally. Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan also lay claim to parts of the South China Sea.
Vietnam's Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh said he was "very disappointed" over the failure to issue a statement.
In a statement issued late on Thursday, Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi repeated that there was "no dispute" about China's sovereignty over Scarborough Shoal.
"China hopes the Philippine side faces the facts squarely and stops creating trouble," he added.
The United States has stressed it is neutral in the long-running maritime dispute, despite offering to help boost the Philippines' decrepit military forces. It says freedom of navigation is its main concern about a waterway that carries $5 trillion in trade - half the world's shipping tonnage.
(Stuart Grudgings reported from Kuala Lumpur.; Additional reporting by Manuel Magato in Manila, Ben Blanchard in Beijing and Olivia Rondonuwu in Jakarta; Editing by Jason Szep and Jeremy Laurence)
8 comments:
Dead man's just raised from hell ?
A bout 3 or 4 days ago KI Media was posted that ah 5 Hong got a hart attack? was it true or not? Why this monster still standing behind the podium?.I though he dead already.
CAMBODIA NOW HAS BEEN LABELED AS YOUN/CHINA PUPPET
who cares about the person's look, really. in politics, it doesn't matter how one look, although it matter how one dresses, though. anyway, mr. hor nam hong was right about asean is not the judge that makes a decision on who should get what in the south china sea, you know. i think some asean members abuse the system by bringing up their countries' personal issue with china, really. where is the asean ethical code of conduct in all of this, really! i think as a chairman for this year asean meeting, cambodia can refuse to let this be the topic of the day, you know. so show some respect for the chairman, ok! yes, the chairman does have the final saying what they should do about it; doesn't mean it's the burden of the chairman of asean to judge like a court of law, you know. so, mr. hor nam hong was right to come up with that conclusion, really.
i think some countries with dispute with china are trying to make it a political issue for cambodia to take side, which cambodia refuse to do, really. good job, mr. hor nam hong!
Hor thinks he is above everyone else, always wear light colored suit to big meetings. The attitude also got to his offsprings, particularly, the one who always barks from England to all over the places outside of his assignment.
When Cambodia is trying to free itself from Vietnam, I support it.
So, Hor Nam Hong is all right this time.
Is CPP is really trying to free Cambodia from the vietcong's grip? Or are Hor, CPP et al. are just trying to survive from all the pressures. Some argue that there will never be any love lost between the vietcong and CPP.
Don't forget that all Westerners love to support a social democracy country like Thailand and South Vietname and if things gone wrong, they will not come to aid Combodia but to put more fuel and fire on top of that. Just look at the UN tribunal court, 30 years nothing has been done and cost multi-millions dollars just to play as the clowns. They'd never want what is best for us but rather what is worst for us. If Hun Sen is smart, he must dominate someone else to run the nation and country and get rid of all the bad name for all cambodian people. Right now, cambodian is known as 'poor, dirt and full of begger from top to toes'. Hun Sen must learn to consider the outcome for our nation, not just think of his own personal interest but the interest of the whole khmer nation really.
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