The agreed framework for a Code on South China Sea was the most important achievement of the recently-concluded meeting of the foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations which segued to more meetings with its dialogue partners and the Asean Regional Forum.
After reading the Joint Communique of the 50th anniversary of ASEAN, together with other documents and accounts of meetings, three narratives come to mind.
Timeline of key events dating back to 1992, when the goal of having a COC in the South China Sea was first set.
In a rebuff to Washington’s call to isolate North Korea, foreign ministers of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations on Saturday stood pat on their position to engage the rogue state, while voicing concerns that its ballistic missile tests and nuclear program seriously threaten peace, security and stability in the region.
Southeast Asian foreign ministers want a more effective use of social media as they re-affirmed a wholistic approach to counter the threat of terrorism.
Perhaps, the Duterte government can now take the lead in defining a more appropriate direction on the South China Sea situation to erase the “silence of the lambs” stigma.
