U.S., Asian defense chiefs united on Chinese militarization of islands; Joint declaration scuttled

Special to WorldTribune.com

Ongoing disputes in the South China Sea forced defense ministers of the 10 Association of East Asian Nations (ASEAN) to scrap a joint declaration during a two-day forum in Malaysia.

The United States and its allies wanted the disputes, which include China’s continuing military buildup and construction on artificial islands, mentioned in the joint declaration while Beijing objected to any reference to the disputes.

U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter. /AFP
U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter. /AFP

“The decision was made by ASEAN because there is no consensus, so no joint declaration is signed,” Malaysian Defense Minister Hishammuddin Hussein told a news conference.

“The Chinese lobbied to keep any reference to the South China Sea out of the final joint declaration,” said a U.S. official who declined to be identified. “Understandably a number of ASEAN countries‎ felt that was inappropriate. It reflects the divide China’s reclamation and militarization … has caused.”

The forum was held a week after a U.S. warship on a freedom-of-navigation patrol sailed close to one of China’s man-made islands in the Spratlys.

“The presence of U.S. naval vessels in the South China Sea is not new, that’s been going on for decades. What’s new is dredging and reclamation and militarization,” U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said.

“Obviously, they (ASEAN defense ministers) weren’t able to reach consensus and that reflects I think the level of concern that was reflected in the conversation about activities in the South China Sea,” Carter told a news conference.

China claims most of the South China Sea as its territory while Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan have rival claims.

China’s Defense Ministry said “certain countries” outside Southeast Asia (a reference to the U.S. and Japan) “tried to forcefully stuff in content to the joint declaration,” at the ASEAN forum and should be held responsible for the scrapping of the document.

Carter and Hishammuddin were slated to board the USS Theodore Roosevelt on Nov. 5 and experts say the ship’s presence will keep the spotlight on tensions in the South China Sea.

“The Teddy Roosevelt’s presence there and our visit is a symbol of our commitment to a re-balance and the importance of the Asia Pacific to the United States,” Carter said.

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