VIENTIANE, Laos (AP) — Southeast Asia's main grouping failed to reach a consensus on how to deal with China's territorial expansion in the South China Sea, intensifying a diplomatic stalemate that officials said they hope to resolve in further closed-door parleys on Sunday.
The foreign ministers of the 10 countries that make up the Association of Southeast Asian Nations deliberated for about three hours, continuing the unfruitful discussions their senior officials had on Saturday, but with no result.
Like all other ASEAN meetings, the foreign ministers' conclave also traditionally ends with a joint statement.
"Despite conflicts and challenges that have occurred in different parts of the world in general, peace, stability and development cooperation among nations remain the prevailing trend in this era," Kommasith said.
Tran Viet Thai, deputy director of the Institute of Strategic Studies, a Vietnamese government think tank, described the arbitration tribunal's ruling as very important because, theoretically at least, it should help resolve disputes, uphold the law and clarify the stance of the parties.
In order to ease tensions, China, the Philippines and possibly other claimants must define what the ruling means for fishing, offshore oil and gas exploration, and military and other activities in the vast body of water that lies between the southern Chinese coast and the Philippine archipelago.
