Asean gives Beijing a pass on S China Sea dispute

Southeast Asian countries took a softer stance on South China Sea disputes during a weekend summit, according to a statement issued yesterday, which went easy on China by avoiding tacit references to its building and arming of its manmade islands.

A chairman's statement of the Association of South East Asian Nations (Asean) was released about 12 hours after the summit ended, and dropped references to "land reclamation and militarization" included in the text issued at last year's meeting, and in an earlier, unpublished version seen by Reuters on Saturday.

The outcome follows what two Asean diplomats on Saturday said were efforts by Chinese foreign ministry and embassy officials to pressure Asean chair the Philippines to keep Beijing's contentious activities in the strategic waterway off Asean's official agenda.

It also indicates four Asean members who the diplomats said had wanted a firmer position had agreed to the statement's more conciliatory tone.

China is not a member of the 10-member bloc and did not attend the summit but is extremely sensitive about the content of its statements. It has often been accused of trying to influence the drafts to muzzle what it sees as dissent and challenges to its sweeping sovereignty claim.

The statement also noted "the improving cooperation between Asean and China", and did not include references to "tensions" or "escalation of activities" seen in earlier drafts and in last year's text. It noted, without elaborating, some leaders' concerns about "recent developments" in the strategic, resource-rich waterway

The softened statement comes as the current ASEAN chairman, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, seeks to bury the hatchet with China after years of wrangling over its maritime assertiveness.