The China map was a distraction, but the ASEAN leaders managed to discuss in depth substantial issues, such as upgrading the ASEAN Secretariat to a more powerful institution, namely the ASEAN Headquarters. They also agreed to indefinitely maintain the isolation of Myanmar's military junta from all ASEAN official meetings.

In the 165-point Chairman Statement, issued after the leaders concluded their biannual summit in Jakarta on Tuesday, ASEAN’s resolve on the South China Sea is formulated in points 157 and 158 of the statement. The leaders avoided making reference to the new map, released just one week before the regional leaders met with their partners, such as the United States, Canada, China, Japan, South Korea and Australia. Neither did they name China in the statement.

China’s new version of the national map includes the South China Sea and its disputed borders with India, as it has done since 2006, to rectify what Beijing previously referred to as "problematic maps" that it claims misrepresent its territorial borders. The new map is seen as a show of force against the neighbors and countries whose interests were affected by Beijing's unilateral claim.

The leaders pointed out in the statement that they discussed the situation in the South China Sea, during which "some ASEAN member states expressed concerns over the land reclamation, activities, serious incidents in the area, including actions that put the safety of all persons at risk, damage to the marine environment, which has eroded trust and confidence, increased tensions and may undermine peace, security and stability in the region".

The leaders renewed calls for the need "to pursue peaceful resolution of disputes by the universally recognized principles of international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS [United Nations Convention on the Laws of the Sea]".

Many expected the regional leaders, including President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo as the chair, to show their courage and stand against China's unilateral claim, as silence will not change anything for the better. 

Four ASEAN members – Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam – also claim small parts of the resource-rich South China Sea, while China claims nearly the whole high seas. The UN does not recognize China's territorial sovereignty claim.

Indonesia is not a claimant, but as China includes the Natuna waters in its nine-dash line map, it is just a matter of time before the two countries will become embroiled in conflict, more than just minor skirmishes in Indonesia's exclusive economic zone.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, US Vice President Kamala Harris, Australian Prime Minister Antony Albanese and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol expressed support for ASEAN’s concern about the South China Sea, given their interest in ensuring freedom and safety of navigation in the disputed waters.

In this regard, Premier Li Qiang emphasized China's importance as the largest trading partner for the regional grouping. "As long as we keep to the right path, no matter what storm may come, China-ASEAN cooperation will be as firm as ever and press ahead against all odds," Li said on Wednesday.

ASEAN needs a stable and peaceful region where no country can force its will against the others. The 10-member regional grouping has therefore insisted on playing a central role in implementing its Indo-Pacific outlook.

All agreed, including the US and China, that although they have their own strategic projection of the region. The multilateral forum like the East Asia Summit, which traditionally follows the ASEAN summit, is and will always be an important confidence-building mechanism for the bloc to keep all players in the Indo-Pacific, including the big powers, advancing cooperation, rather than confrontation.

ASEAN’s soft approach to China, while perhaps clumsy, is part of realpolitik. It is not a matter of right or wrong choice.