Nguyen Dinh Chien, Vietnam Institute of Defense Strategies
Abstract. The policy’s Asian toward East Sea issue always topical issues, attracting the attention of international public opinion and the region. In July 2016, after the Court of Arbitration in La Haye ruled the East Sea, but the East Sea does not appear to wind waves, but still flowing underground water line, not quiet. Assessing the changing ASEAN’s East Sea policy’s significant in the past two years. Naturally, said the overall situation changes Nanhai also need to evaluate the change of institutional policy other action - especially change US policy, ally and partner of the United States.
Keywords: ASEAN, East Sea, The policy.
1. ASEAN's Policy Situation in the East Sea:
Recently, the 32nd ASEAN Summit held in Singapore, there were many issues mentioned at this conference, which’s an especially important issue for regional security is to analyze the contents related to the East Sea in Declaration of ASEAN Chair in the past two years may find some subtle change in the policy’s East Sea ASEAN. In addition to the joint statement by the ASEAN Foreign Ministers, the ASEAN Chair's Statement is the most explicit statement of ASEAN's official stance. From September 2004 until now, the ASEAN Summit announced a total of 4 Declaration of the President, The Declaration of the 28th-29th ASEAN Presidencies in Vientiane, Lao PDR, in September 2016, Declaration of the 30th ASEAN Chairman in Manila, Philippines in April 2017, Declaration of the 31st ASEAN Presidency of Manila in the Philippines in November 1974 and the Declaration of the 32nd ASEAN Chairmanship in Singapore on 28 April.
Policy content of the ASEAN ‘s East Sea issue is expressed in these documents is the overall improvement in relations between ASEAN and China, especially evolved when negotiations on the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea - COC. In 8/2016, the parties related to the South China Sea have decided to accelerate the negotiations COC. In May 2017, senior officials from China and ASEAN discussed through the COC. On 06/8/2017, the China-ASEAN Foreign Ministers announced the achievement of the draft COC framework (Observer, 2017), this draft framework was adopted at the ASEAN-China Senior Officials Meeting on the implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, abbreviated SOM-DOC in Guiyang, China on 19 May, 2017. In 11/2017, Summit China - ASEAN official statement COC start negotiations.
2. Major Factors in ASEAN Policy Towards the East Sea:
Consider four of the Declaration of ASEAN Chair, can see the views of ASEAN on East Sea issue has five big factor as follows:
The first’s to clearly demonstrate the macro-objective of the East Sea. These four texts reaffirm the importance of maintaining peace, security, stability and freedom of navigation and flying through the East Sea. The Declaration of the 31st ASEAN Presidency issued by the Philippines in November 1974 in Manila further clarified the importance of safeguarding maritime security and order based on the general rule. The Declaration of the 30th and 32nd ASEAN Presidents expressed the perception that the interests of the South China Sea are peaceful, prosperous and stable waters. In general, ASEAN's position on the East Sea high inheritance.
The second factor is the assessment of the situation in the East Sea. Words and expressions on this issue are new in the five elements, reflecting the consensus within ASEAN. The Declaration of the 28th and 29th ASEAN Presidents expressed deep concern over the recent and present situation, with regard to the current status change and escalation of action in the East Sea, while worries these actions increased the tension, may affect peace, security and stability of the region. Expressions of deep concern’re the wording atmosphere of tension in the East Sea in the present context.
The Declaration of the 30th ASEAN Chair in April 2017 only paid attention to the concerns of some leaders over the recent activity in the East Sea. Declaration of the 31st ASEAN Chairman in November 2017 also mentioned this issue. However, in terms of the wording of this declaration, the two countries depend on ASEAN's rotating presidency in 2017 in the Philippines. In that year, Duterte government to improve relations with China, intended to reduce tensions in the East Sea (Declarations, 2007). Although the Declaration of ASEAN Chair locks 32 no phrase deep concern while referring to the concerns about changing the status quo, escalating actions in the East Sea, anxious for peace, security and stability in the East Sea. This proved positive factor in the perception of ASEAN East Sea situation ‘s somewhat increased compared to 2016.
The third factor in ASEAN's view of the East Sea issue ‘s that the proposal situation for action complicating China's situation. The declaration of the 28-29 ASEAN Presidency reaffirms the need to strengthen mutual and building trust, restrain unsettled behavior, avoid jobs that can complicate the situation’s form, settlement of disputes by peaceful means on the basis of international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea 1982 - UNCLOS. At the same time, underscoring the importance of demilitarization and self-restraint in all actions including the change of status in the Hoang Sa and Truong Sa archipelagos can lead to complexity of the situation and increase tension in the East Sea. Remarkably, the way the requirements of non-militarization and self-restraint are addressed in these four statements is somewhat different. The text that has the softest phrases is the Chairman's statement of April 30, 1971, reiterating the importance of strengthening mutual trust and building trust, maintain self-control action, avoid actions that could lead to complicating the situation, settle disputes by peaceful means, without threatening the use of force.
Declaration of ASEAN Chair 32 has just been announced basically agreed with the statement by the ASEAN Chair 28-29, but thinner soft words emphasize the importance of demilitarization and self-restraint in all actions, including actions that could complicate the situation and increase tensions that DOC mentioned. This consistency demonstrates that China's military action and strategic action in the East Sea’ re the basis for ASEAN to assess China's strategic intentions and develop response strategies.
The fourth factor in ASEAN's view of the East Sea issue ‘s that in order to maintain peace and stability in the East Sea, it ‘s necessary to strengthen confidence building, eliminate doubts among the parties. In this regard, four of the Chairman Statement on not differ essentially anonymous. The text stressed the importance of measures of mutual trust, welcomed the application of the South China Sea two options implemented soon include hotline diplomat, rules for handling the collision unwanted in emergency situations at sea between ASEAN - China.
The fifth factor in ASEAN's view of the South China Sea is its stance in the Declaration of Conduct on the East Sea - the DOC and the COC. ASEAN emphasized the comprehensive and effective implementation of the DOC while encouraging the parties to quickly implement the COC. Words in the Declaration of the ASEAN Chair, 28-29 June 2016 (ASEAN, 2016) is the strongest, emphasizing the urgency of implementing the DOC and negotiation the COC. Speaking at the closing ceremony, Lao Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith declared ASEAN 28-29 Summit successful and thanked for support and cooperation of ASEAN Member States, Dialogue Partners and external partners; It also stresses that 2016 is only the first year of implementation of the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 (ASEAN, 2017), ASEAN Summit on 28-29 this time through many documents to turn vision into reality as a dynamic ASEAN community ‘s important, but the next step will be a very important meaning by ASEAN should turn it into the document specific action (VietnamPlus, 2016).
Declaration of the 30th ASEAN Presidency and 31st 2017 (HUU, 2017) emphasized the progress ASEAN-China cooperation, the urgent requirements. Declaration of the 32nd ASEAN Chairman (Philstar Global, 2018) newly published warmly welcomed progress of China-ASEAN cooperation, at the same time, the emphasis being placed on deepening the negotiation of COC.
ASEAN can see the overall satisfaction with the progress of negotiations COC while tying the level of cooperation with China with COC negotiations progressed. Cooperation between China and ASEAN in the past two years on the implementation of DOC and COC deployment negotiations positive, remarkable. In 2016, ASEAN's attitude towards China over the East Sea issue ‘s somewhat skeptical of China's words and actions in the East Sea, thus stressing the urgency of implementing the DOC and negotiating COC. After 2017, ASEAN feels the urgency of the COC process. Future negotiations progressed surely how developments will affect ASEAN's policy on the East Sea issue.
3. ASEAN's Policy Towards the East Sea Issue:
Examining from the analysis of the five major elements of ASEAN's position on the East Sea can see the comments of ASEAN in the past two years for the East Sea situation ‘s generally positive trend, but that positive nature should continue to be reinforced, more consensus in both present and future. For example, after the situation in the East Sea in 2017 is tense, ASEAN's remarks on the East Sea in 2018 continue to be more straightforward and complex. ASEAN should uphold the spirit of unity, unified view of the East Sea. Therefore, the demand for non-militarization and self-restraint, to maintain a peaceful and stable environment is always the view of ASEAN, which is also a strong signal.
In addition to analyzing the above, we can also find the evolution of ASEAN's view of the East Sea from the change in the order of major factors in the system of factors in ASEAN's position on East Sea. The Declaration of ASEAN Chair 28-29 began with deep concern over the situation in the East Sea, stressed the importance in preserving peace and stability in the East Sea, then make recommendations to act, stating the urgency of implementing the DOC and negotiate the COC, the two measures to be taken soon as the hotline between the diplomats and the rules for handling collisions unintended where the sea was ranked last. Concern for the East Sea situation is only ranked third, the East Sea order is ranked first, second is the early solution, the last one is the action proposal. The 31st ASEAN Presidency's remarks refer first to the improvement of ASEAN-China relations and to the negotiation of the COC, followed by the welcome implementation of the early measures, then reiterated the importance of maintaining order in the East Sea, finally make recommendations for action. The Declaration of the 32nd ASEAN Chairmen first mentioned the importance of maintaining the South Sea Order, followed by the progressive negotiation of the COC and the solution was made early, then expressed concern about the situation in the East Sea, finally reminding the motion for action.
From that point of view, in addition to the Declaration by the ASEAN Chair on 28-29 2016, the remaining three ASEAN Chairmen 's Declarations also highlight ASEAN' s concerns about the situation in the East Sea to the first position of the contents in discussion and statement. But these documents emphasize the importance of protecting the environment of peace and stability in the East Sea and promote negotiations COC. Therefore, environmental protection and peace in the East Sea’re to promote common COC negotiationof ASEAN and China on the East Sea should be further discussed and seriously implemented in practice.
4. ASEAN's Consistent Policy Toward the East Sea Issue:
The Chairman's statement showed ASEAN's consistency in the East Sea issue. The ASEAN member countries wanted an East Sea peace and stability, all disagreements conflict of sovereignty island must be resolved by peaceful means, based on the system of international law, international marine law and provisions of UNCLOS. Through the ASEAN Chairman's statement of 28 to 31 courses showed an expression of consistency important about the views of ASEAN on East Sea issue.
Comprehensive respect of the ASEAN countries for the legal process and diplomacy is the general view of the ASEAN member countries in this context such as Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore,and Vietnam. ASEAN has also affirmed its deep concern over the recent and present situation in the East Sea, including the change of status and militarization of the East Sea. Most ASEAN members are welcome legal process and diplomacy in resolving East Sea issue.
5. Conclusion
The most important in early decades of the XXI century, ASEAN has an increasinglycommon policy towards the East Sea issue, which’s to ensure freedom of navigation aviation in the East Sea, any conflicts over a conflict over sovereignty over islands should be resolved by peaceful means. Stakeholders must respect international law, apply the internationalmaritime law, UNCLOS to delimit the sea, resolve maritime sovereignty disputes, at the same time, they oppose the military actions of the East Sea, which affect the peace and stability of the East Sea, the region and the world./.
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