ASEAN and China were unable to conclude negotiations on a long-delayed South China Sea code of conduct under the Philippines' chairmanship, despite reaching provisional agreement on about 80% of the draft, Philippine foreign minister Ma. Theresa Lazaro said on Sunday, Reuters reported from Manila.

Source: Reuters

"There is no conclusion yet," Lazaro told a press conference at the summit of the 11-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations in Manila, adding that several key issues remain unresolved, including questions over whether the code would be legally binding. "The ASEAN countries plus China have also different views on how things are," she added.

Sunday's confirmation is the official outcome that diplomats had predicted on November 11, when senior Southeast Asian diplomats said the talks would slip beyond 2026. Read the earlier report: South China Sea code talks expected to slip beyond 2026

Negotiations on an ASEAN-China Code of Conduct in the South China Sea have dragged on for over two decades, but the Philippines, as current chair, had committed to speed up those talks and conclude the code this year. Lazaro said there was simply "not enough time" to finish the agreement, with three out of four core sticking points, including whether the code will carry legally binding force, still unsettled, Philstar reported via ANI.

Source: ANI / Philstar

Why the code matters

China's Southeast Asian neighbours want the code to be grounded in international law, which they have repeatedly accused Beijing of disregarding as it asserts its sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea. Beijing maintains that its actions in the South China Sea have been lawful and professional, Reuters reported.

China's extensive maritime claims overlap with the exclusive economic zones of Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam, making a functional code essential to preventing any escalation of tensions and managing incidents at sea. An international arbitration tribunal ruled in 2016 that China's sweeping claims have no basis under international law, a decision that Beijing rejects.

Manila and Beijing have been locked in a series of maritime confrontations in recent years, with the Philippines accusing China of repeated aggressive actions inside its exclusive economic zone, including dangerous manoeuvres, water-cannoning and disrupting resupply missions. China, for its part, has accused the Philippines of intruding into what it claims as its territory. Both sets of claims are attributed as reported by Reuters.

Analysts say the disagreements are not only between ASEAN and China. Collin Koh, a senior fellow at Singapore's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, said divisions among ASEAN members, including over the geographical scope of the code, had also slowed negotiations. "Other than Beijing, intramural divergences within ASEAN also play a significant role," he said, adding that the remaining differences would be difficult to resolve and would require "major concessions" from the various parties.

What happens next

Singapore will inherit the task of trying to secure agreement on the code of conduct when it assumes the ASEAN chairmanship next year. Lazaro did not set a new deadline for completion, and the talks will continue toward an "effective and substantive" code at the earliest possible time, according to reports of her remarks.