[ad_1]
HANOI: Southeast Asian leaders kicked off a multilateral summit on Thursday (November 12) that is expected to address tensions in the South China Sea and address plans for a post-pandemic economic recovery in a region where rivalry between The United States and China has been on the rise.
So far, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has not been “drawn into the maelstrom” of such rivalries and challenges to the international multilateral system, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc said in his opening remarks at the 37th ASEAN Summit in Hanoi.
READ: Prime Minister Lee says Singapore will contribute US $ 100,000 to ASEAN’s COVID-19 fund and praises the signing of RCEP as a ‘great achievement’
A military soldier stands guard at the ASEAN summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, on November 12, 2020 (Photo: REUTERS / Kham).
“Three-quarters of a century have passed since the end of World War II. However, world peace and security are not yet truly sustainable,” said Phuc, whose government holds the presidency of the 10-member bloc in 2020.
“This year, they are particularly under increased threat as a result of compounding risks arising from the unpredictable behavior of states, major power rivalries and frictions,” Phuc said.
Communist Party of Vietnam Secretary General and Chairman of State Nguyen Phu Trong (center) walks past the flags of ASEAN member countries before the opening ceremony of the 37th ASEAN Summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, on November 12, 2020 (Photo: REUTERS / Kham).
On the summit’s agenda will be tensions in the South China Sea, where Chinese ships have been embroiled in periodic clashes with ships from Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia as Beijing seeks to assert its territorial claims on the disputed waterway.
China claims about 80 percent of the sea, including large swaths of Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone, or EEZ, as well as the Paracel Islands and the Spratly Islands. It also overlaps the EEZs of ASEAN members Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.
Since mid-August, the United States has repeatedly irritated China by sending warships to the South China Sea and blacklisted 24 Chinese entities for their involvement in the construction and militarization of artificial islands.
Vietnamese artists in traditional dress from member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) perform at the opening ceremony of the 37th ASEAN Summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, on November 12, 2020. REUTERS / Kham
ASEAN leaders are also expected to sign the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) on Sunday in what could become the world’s largest trade deal.
READ: Asia Pacific leaders to sign RCEP trade deal amid US electoral uncertainty.
The agreement, which comes at a time when tensions over the outcome of the US elections leave doubts about Washington’s commitment to the region, will likely consolidate China’s position more firmly as an economic partner for Southeast Asia, Japan and Korea. and put it in a better position. to shape the trade rules of the region.
