Manila urges unity for South East Asian nations in China sea dispute

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

(Reuters) – The Philippines is pushing for a meeting among four Southeast Asian nations with conflicting claims to waters in the South China Sea so that they can hammer out a common stand in dealings with China, Manila’s foreign minister said on Friday.

Manila is waging a territorial dispute with China over the Spratlys and the Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, an area believed to be rich in oil and natural gas deposits as well as fisheries resources.

Brunei, Malaysia, Vietnam and Taiwan also have claims in the sea, which is traversed each year by ship-borne trade worth about $5 trillion.

Albert del Rosario said the Philippines wanted to hold talks with Brunei, Malaysia and Vietnam before foreign ministers from regional grouping the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) meet for an annual conference in Myanmar next month.

 

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/07/18/us-philippines-southchinasea-idUSKBN0FN0SF20140718

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail