BEIJING, Nov 25(ABC): Earlier this month, China and members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) issued a joint statement on the South China Sea at the 25th China-ASEAN Summit held in Phnom Penh of Cambodia. In keeping with the spirit of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) that has been in place for 20 years, the joint statement has shown the world not only the common will and determination of China and ASEAN members to make the South China Sea a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation, but also their readiness to advance consultations on the Code of Conduct (COC) in the sea and confidence in reaching consensus on the COC at an early date.
For a long time, a few countries outside the region have deliberately distorted facts, stirred up tensions and incited confrontation in the region. Washington, in particular, has exerted itself to hype up a so-called threat to the “freedom of navigation” in the South China Sea, a claim purely fabricated. The fact is while some 100,000 merchant vessels now travel in this busy shipping route annually, not a single ship has ever reported its safety threatened in the South China Sea.
