On Friday, October 11th, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued a warning to the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) not to take any “provocative” actions against Taiwan. Following strong criticism from Beijing of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen’s Double Ten National Day speech, Blinken, speaking to reporters at the ASEAN summit in Laos, stated, “China (CCP) should not use any excuse, like Tsai Ing-wen’s speech, for provocative actions.”
The day before, Blinken attended the US-ASEAN summit on behalf of President Biden. In his opening remarks, Blinken expressed concerns to Southeast Asian leaders about the CCP’s increasingly dangerous and illegal activities in the South China Sea, leading to injuries to personnel and damage to ships of ASEAN countries, violating commitments to peaceful dispute resolution.
Blinken reaffirmed that the US “will continue to support freedom of navigation and overflight in the Indo-Pacific region.” He also stated the US’s desire to work with ASEAN leaders to “maintain stability in the Taiwan Strait.”
While the US has no territorial claims in the South China Sea, it has deployed navy ships and fighter jets to patrol the area to counteract CCP expansion and threats. Blinken emphasized that the annual ASEAN summit provided a platform to address other common challenges, including the conflict in Myanmar, North Korea’s “destabilizing behavior,” and Russia’s aggressive war against Ukraine.
He highlighted that the US remains the region’s largest foreign investor and is committed to strengthening its partnership with ASEAN. In addition to attending the ASEAN summit, Blinken also participated in the East Asia Summit (EAS) with leaders from the CCP, Russia, and ASEAN countries, as well as Japan, South Korea, India, Australia, and New Zealand.
Prior to Blinken’s meeting with the 10 ASEAN member countries, a series of violent clashes occurred at sea between the CCP and ASEAN member countries Philippines and Vietnam. Vietnam stated last week that CCP troops attacked Vietnamese fishermen in disputed waters.
The CCP also dispatched patrol ships to Indonesia and Malaysia’s claimed exclusive economic zones. There are concerns that the CCP’s increasingly aggressive actions in disputed waters might escalate into a full-blown conflict.
There have been numerous clashes between CCP and Philippine vessels. The US has warned that if Philippine troops, ships, or aircraft are armed in attacks in the region, including the South China Sea, the US is obligated to protect the Philippines—its oldest treaty ally in Asia.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. complained to summit leaders on Thursday, October 10th, that his country “continues to be harassed and intimidated by the CCP.”
He mentioned that due to the CCP’s violations of international law, the overall situation in the South China Sea remains tense and unchanged, which is regrettable. He called on ASEAN and the CCP to urgently negotiate the formulation of a code of conduct for the South China Sea.
Malaysia is set to assume the rotating chairmanship of ASEAN next year and is expected to push for accelerated negotiations on a code of conduct. Officials have agreed to strive to complete the code by 2026, but negotiations have been hindered by some contentious issues and disagreements, including whether to reach a binding agreement.
During his speech on Thursday, CCP Premier Li Keqiang took a firm stance, referring to the South China Sea as a “common home” for countries, while reiterating that CCP actions are solely aimed at safeguarding sovereignty.
Li also criticized the interference of “external forces.” Although Li did not specifically name the so-called “external forces,” the CCP had previously warned the US not to interfere in territorial disputes in the region.
For a long time, the CCP has claimed nearly all of the South China Sea, conflicting with claims from ASEAN member states Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, and Taiwan. The region is one of the world’s most important shipping lanes.
Beijing refuses to accept the 2016 ruling by the Hague-based International Court of Arbitration on the South China Sea dispute, declaring the CCP’s sovereignty claims in the South China Sea invalid. The CCP has also engaged in land reclamation and militarization of the islands it controls in the area.
Despite territorial disputes between multiple member countries and the CCP, ASEAN has maintained a cautious stance on the conflicts. The CCP is the group’s largest trading partner and the third-largest investor. This has not disrupted trade relations between the two sides, with the focus remaining on expanding economic cooperation.
(This article references reports from the Associated Press and Radio Free Asia.)