Australia, Japan, US call for South China Sea code to be legally binding
Reuters
August 7, 2017 16:41 MYT
August 7, 2017 16:41 MYT
Chinese dredging vessels are purportedly seen in the waters around Mischief Reef in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea in this still image. U.S. Navy/Handout via Reuters/File Photo
Australia, Japan and the United States on Monday urged Southeast Asian nations and China to ensure that a South China Sea code of conduct they have committed to draft will be legally binding.
The Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) and China should establish a set of rules that were "legally binding, meaningful, effective, and consistent with international law," the foreign ministers of the three countries said in a statement following a meeting in Manila.
They also urged China and the Philippines to abide by last year's international arbitration ruling on the South China Sea.