FACING VARIOUS CHALLENGES
The meeting of regional leaders took place amid rising tensions in the South China Sea. The Philippines and China are embroiled in a maritime dispute, after a ship collision left Filipino crew members injured.
However, that is not the only challenge facing ASEAN.
In Myanmar, the army is preparing to recruit its first group of civilians in April, after imposing inactive military enlistment measures in February.
Many observers fear this move will trigger a new wave of violence, in addition to the country’s ongoing conflict.
Meanwhile, ASEAN’s position remains adhering to the Five Point Consensus, a peace plan with the Myanmar army to resolve the crisis. ASEAN leaders agreed to this consensus at a meeting in April 2021.
The regional grouping is set to move forward, even though its members and partners have different approaches to the problem.
Australia, for example, has downgraded diplomatic ties and imposed targeted sanctions on Myanmar’s military.
PM Lee said the situation in Myanmar was getting worse.
“We have a Five-Point Consensus on ASEAN’s stance, which makes our stance clear. And we also have arrangements that allow ASEAN to continue to cooperate with many external partners – Australia, the EU, America,” he added.
“They have different views, their position is not the same as ours in ASEAN, but they can live with the Five Point Consensus so that our cooperation is not hampered.”
DETENTION IN THE SOUTH CHINA SEA
On Wednesday, Australia and ASEAN concluded a three-day summit marking 50 years of partnership.
In the meeting, the leaders called for restraint in the South China Sea and a lasting ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
This happens because several ASEAN members, including Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines, have overlapping claims with China over parts of the South China Sea.
A joint statement called for rules-based order in the Indo Pacific, urging countries to avoid unilateral actions that could endanger peace.
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said: “I am very worried, and Australia is worried about unsafe and unstable behavior in the South China Sea.
“This is dangerous and creates a risk of miscalculation, which could then lead to escalation. So, we would call on a number of countries that were emphasized in the statement, the basic document is UNCLOS, the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which is something that must be a guide for the participation of all countries .”
