A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson on Tuesday said that China is willing to work with members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to fully implement the declaration on the conduct (DOC) of parties in the South China Sea.
In his regular press conference, Geng Shuang said that China is also willing to deepen maritime practical cooperation to arrive at a code of conduct or COC “based on consensus at an early date.”
On the occasion of ASEAN’s 50th anniversary this year, Geng said China will support important consensus in building the ASEAN community, maintaining centrality in regional cooperation, and playing a bigger role in international and regional affairs.
Geng said China took note of the statement of President Rodrigo Duterte as chairman of the 30th ASEAN Summit held last weekend in Manila.
In the final version of the chairman’s statement, President Duterte said that ASEAN countries have reaffirmed the importance of maintaining peace, stability, security and freedom of navigation and over-flight in the South China Sea.
