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South China Sea ruling risks ASEAN stability: Chinese expert
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Protesters display messages during a rally outside the Chinese Consulate in Makati city, the Philippines, before The Hague-based UN international arbitration tribunal announced its ruling on a South China Sea dispute on July 12. (AP/Bullit Marquez)
T
he Philippines' unilateral initiation of arbitration on the South China Sea dispute risks undermining the peace and stability of ASEAN, a Chinese expert has said.
"It creates the disunity of ASEAN, which is very unfortunate, which will significantly undermine the central role which ASEAN likes to play," China Institute of International Studies executive vice president and senior fellow Ruan Zongze said in Jakarta on Wednesday during a discussion with the press organized by the Chinese Embassy in Indonesia.
He said only four of the 10 member countries of the regional bloc were claimants in the dispute and questioned the relevance of the issue to the majority of the organization.
He said China was a strong supporter of ASEAN, citing that the country was the first signatory to a number of cooperation agreements such as the Free Trade Area (FTA) and the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC). Relations between the East Asian giant and the region were good on the whole, he added.
However, the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruling on Tuesday in favor of the Philippines’ claims in the disputed South China Sea has had an impact on the two countries. "China's bilateral relations with the Philippines has suffered a huge blow," Ruan said.
