alt

Activities of Concerned Parties

China

China Said that Many Countries Supported Its Position on South China Sea

Speaking in a press conference on June 14, China's Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lu Kang said, "particular countries insist on launching negative publicity campaigns or even creating tensions in this region for selfish gains and in disregard of the well-being of regional countries and people. They go all out to instigate certain country in the region to go back on its own words, break rules and undermine international rule of law under the excuse of ostensibly "upholding the rule", confound right and wrong and manipulate public opinions to smear China. In this case, some friendly countries that care about China come to seek truth from us. After knowing the merits and demerits of the relevant issue, many countries including Sierra Leone and Kenya and tens of countries. We commend and appreciate their support. The handful of countries which attempt to sling mud at China should better quit labeling themselves as "the international community" in face of such facts. In a word, facts can never be covered up by manipulating pubic opinions, and the world is more than just seven or eight countries." Regarding to the incident when Indonesian navy vessels detained one Chinese fishing boat illegally fishing in waters off the Natuna Islands and arrested seven Chinese fishermen on board, and warning shots were fired by the Indonesian vessels. Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying, June 19, said, This incident took place in waters that are Chinese fishermen's traditional fishing grounds and where China and Indonesia have overlapping claims for maritime rights and interests. China strongly protests and condemns the abuse of force. China urges the Indonesian side to stop taking actions that complicate, exaggerate the dispute and undermine peace and stability, and handle the fishery issue at sea in a constructive way."

The Philippines

Philippine protesters say harassed by Chinese during flag stunt

Filipino protesters said Jun 13 that Chinese coastguard ships blocked and sprayed them with water as they sailed to a Scarborough Shoal to plant a Philippine flag for independence day. The Kalayaan Atin Ito (Freedom This is Ours) group said 16 of its members were promptly blocked by two Chinese coastguard vessels. "Five of us attempted to swim to the rock to plant the Philippine flag and the UN flag but they harassed us. They chased us with their two speed boats and blocked our path, sprayed water on us. Two of the swimmers however were able to reach the ring of the shoal and raised the Philippine flag," the group's coordinator Vera Joy Ban-eg, told AFP. "

No Philippines-China talks on sea row in 2 years

Former Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario on June 18 said President-elect Rodrigo Duterte had given  assurance that there would be no bilateral talks with China to resolve the territorial dispute in the South China Sea in the next two years. Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonio Carpio also said the Philippine panel in the arbitration proceedings against China had received the same assurance from Duterte.

Indonesia

Govt to formulate official stance on South China Sea dispute

After meeting with Jokowi at the State Palace in Jakarta on June 13, Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Luhut Pandjaitan said that related ministries were set to hold a meeting to formulate the government’s stance. “President [Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo] has urged us to formulate our stance on the South China Sea so that all state officials have the same answers [in response to queries on the disputes],” he said. Indonesia, he continued, had also continued to push for the full and effective implementation of the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC), which included an ongoing draft code of conduct.

Indonesia detains Chinese fishing boat and crew for illegal fishing

Indonesia’s navy spokesman said on June 18, said, an Indonesian navy warship arrested a Chinese boat and seven Chinese crew members for fishing illegally in in the Natuna Sea. “When approached by our warship, the foreign fishing boats manoeuvred and escaped,” First Admiral Edi Sucipto said. The warship chased after them and fired a warning shot, but the boats ignored it. “Finally, after some warning shots, one of the 12 foreign fishing boats stopped,” the navy officer said.

The United States

US to counter China uncertainty with combined Pacific Fleet

On June 14, the four-star commander of the Pacific Fleet, Adm. Scott Swift said that the U.S. Navy will use the combined power of its Pacific Fleet -- the 7th Fleet and the 3rd Fleet -- to counter rising uncertain ty in Asia. Following this combination, Navy should utilize the "total combined power" of the 140,000 sailors, the over 200 ships and the 1,200 aircraft that make up the Pacific Fleet. Swift said he sees a "common theme" occurring in both the South China Sea and the East China Sea, where "a context of uncertainty and angst in the region has brought about a lack of transparency." Swift also voiced worries about recent Chinese statements regarding the South China Sea.  "I was struck by comments that have been made, with claims outside of what the Chinese refer to as the Nine-Dash Line. There is a new reference being made -- that I hear about traditional fishing grounds. That has raised concerns," he said.

US Aircraft Carriers Start Drills Off Philippines

The US Pacific Command said the USS John C. Stennis and USS Ronald Reagan began conducting air defense drills, sea surveillance, and long range strikes on June 18. “No other Navy can concentrate this much combat power on one sea ... It was truly impressive,” said U The US exercises synchronized the activities of over 12,000 sailors, 140 aircraft, six combatants and the two carriers, said Hitchcock. S Rear Adm. Marcus Hitchcock, carrier strike group commander.

Regional Snapshots

Vietnam's Deputy Prime Minister meets Chinese counterpart

On June 12, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung led Vietnamese delegation to attend the fourth China-South Asia Expo and the 24th Kunming Import and Export Commodities Fair in Yunnan province’s Kunming city. During the meeting with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang, Deputy PM Dung said Vietnam attaches importance to developing the stable, healthy and long-term relationship with China and stands ready to work together with the country to deepen the comprehensive strategic cooperation partnership. Regarding to the East Sea issue, Mr. Dung expressed his concerns over recent developments in the region and the East Sea, emphasizing that peace and stability are necessary for regional cooperation and development.He called on the two sides to take pragmatic actions to control disputes and take no actions that complicate and expand disputes in the East Sea.

Vietnamese Deputy PM Pham Binh Minh meets Chinese Foreign Minister

Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh met with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Yunnan, China, on June 13 on the sideline of the Special ASEAN-China Foreign Ministers' Meeting. Both sides said they highly value the cooperation between ASEAN and China and wanted to boost the ties further. The Vietnamese Deputy PM and Foreign Minister also expressed Vietnam’s concern over the recent complicated developments in the East Sea, and called for compliance of commitments and common perceptions reached by leaders of the two Parties and countries on well controlling disputes and refraining from acts that further complicate the situation while pushing for progress in negotiation mechanisms on disputes at sea. He noted the need to together with the ASEAN effectively implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and early build a Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) to help maintain peace and stability in the East Sea and the region.

Special Asean-China Foreign Ministers' Meeting

The meeting was co-chaired by Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and his Singaporean counterpart Vivian Balakrishnan on June 14 in Yunnan, China. The meeting focused on two major issues, ASEAN-China relation and the South China Sea issues. According to the joint statement of the meeting, Asean Ministers had a candid exchange with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in view of the recent developments on the ground. "We emphasised the importance of non-militarisation and self-restraint in the conduct of all activities, including land reclamation, which may raise tensions in the South China Sea," the statement said. "We underscored the importance of the full and effective implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea in its entirety, and while noting the momentum and new phase of consultations, urged the early adoption of an effective Code of Conduct, including through increasing the frequency of ASEAN-China Senior Officials’ Meeting and Joint Working Group Meetings on the Implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea," it stressed.

THE EAST SEA STUDIES