DFA: Sea Code of Conduct up in the air

MANILA, Philippines — The conclusion of a Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea during this year’s Philippine chairship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is unlikely, with only 70 percent of the negotiations completed.

At a press briefing yesterday at the International Media Center, Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) ASEAN spokesman Dominic Xavier Imperial said the COC negotiations are still ongoing.

“At the moment, we’re seeing a 70 percent completion of the negotiations. We’re at that stage at the moment, and looking at the remaining 30 percent, that will be up to our negotiators on how they will be able to complete that,” he announced.

A regional code of conduct aims to prevent conflicting territorial claims in the South China Sea from erupting into violent confrontations.

The remaining issues being discussed center on how the agreement should come about, Imperial said.

“From the Philippine side, what we want to ensure is that the COC will guide the behavior of all parties in the South China Sea and we are also pushing that the right of third parties to be respected even if they’re not part of the negotiation,” he explained.

Imperial stressed that the Philippines “wants to make sure that those elements will matter when the COC negotiation is completed.”

The Philippines aims to complete the negotiations within the year, following the decision of the foreign ministers three years ago to finalize the talks.