* Ahead of China trip, Clinton says “threats” create more
risk
* Rising tensions raise spectre of military conflict
* Clinton hopes for progress by November East Asia Summit
By Andrew Quinn
JAKARTA, Sept 3 (Reuters) – China and its neighbours in
Southeast Asia must move to draw up a code of conduct in coming
months to help resolve disputes in the South China Sea, and
should refrain from threats and coercion that have sent tension
skyrocketing, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on
Monday.
Clinton, visiting Indonesia ahead of a trip to China this
week, said she would tell Beijing and other claimants that it
was essential to get faltering diplomacy back on track and move
toward a deal.
“The United States does not take a position on competing
territorial claims over land features, but we believe the
nations of the region should work collaboratively together to
resolve disputes without coercion, without intimidation, without
threats and certainly without the use of force,” she said.
The South China Sea is one of a number of potential
flashpoints that have emerged since the Obama administration
announced it was “pivoting” U.S. attention to the Asia-Pacific
following years of military engagement in wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
Other disputes over maritime territory involving China and
key U.S. allies South Korea and Japan have also sharpened,
adding to strain on U.S.-Chinese relations as both countries
make their way toward political transitions this year.
Clinton’s talks in Indonesia focused on the aftermath of
July’s summit of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian
Nations (ASEAN), where efforts to agree on a common approach to
territorial tensions with China collapsed in disarray, raising
fears of increased friction..
Beijing’s assertion of sovereignty over a vast stretch of
the South China Sea has set it directly against Vietnam and the
Philippines, while Brunei, Taiwan and Malaysia also lay claim to
other parts of the region, making it Asia’s biggest potential
military troublespot.
China has resisted proposals for a multilateral code of
conduct, preferring to try to negotiate disputes with each of
the far less powerful individual claimants.
It has also stepped up its activity in the region, including
establishing a military garrison on a disputed island, and
accused Washington of seeking to stir up trouble far from home.
MECHANISM
Clinton will travel to Beijing for Wednesday talks with top
Chinese officials including outgoing President Hu Jintao and
Vice President Xi Jinping, the man tipped to replace him at
China’s paramount leader following a Communist Party congress
later this year.
She said her message would be that it was time to calm to
the waters and that a mutually agreed code of conduct was the
best way to do this.
“It is critical for the work that has begun on the code of
conduct to continue. The United States believes very strongly
that no party should take any steps that would increase tensions
or do anything that could be viewed as coercive or intimidating
to advance their territorial claims,” Clinton said.
“It is important that there be a mechanism for resolving
the potential for the outbreak of conflict or miscalculation by
any party,” suggesting this could be a goal for the East Asia
Summit leaders conference in Cambodia in November.
“This is in everyone’s interest, and it is time for
diplomacy,” Clinton said. “I will be discussing these matters in
Beijing with Chinese leaders. I think we can make progress
before the East Asia Summit.”
Indonesia, the region’s biggest country and one seen as
neutral given it has no claim to the disputed waters, has taken
on the role of mediator, and Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa
said he was confident that the ASEAN nations were now working in
concert on the South China Sea issue.
Natalegawa said he had had “frank” discussions on the
subject with Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi during a
recent round of Indonesian diplomacy aimed at getting all
parties back into talks.
“I think the track is quite clear what’s ahead of us,”
Natalegawa said. “Absent the diplomatic process, we can be
certain of more incidents and more tension for the region.”
Clinton’s current trip began in the South Pacific – another
corner of the world where Beijing is fast expanding its
influence – and she will continue on from China for further
talks in East Timor and Brunei.
She will round out the week in the Russian port city of
Vladivostok for the annual Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC) forum, a further chance to press the theme of U.S.
engagement with regional leaders.
