22vPaX

oundtable • non-claimant perspectives on the south china sea
the parties.” 7 It believes that tension in the South China Sea is a subset of
the broader regional agenda and that the disputes should not dominate
ASEAN-China ties.
At the same time, Singapore harbors no illusion that the competing
territorial claims can be resolved anytime soon and has maintained that
issues of territoriality can only be dealt with by the disputing parties. What it
hopes to achieve in its short stewardship will be to try to cool down tensions
and avoid any escalations that would adversely affect ASEAN-China ties.
To this end, Singapore will work to make progress in negotiations for
a binding CoC in the disputed waters as a basis for self-restraint by all
parties. Given the impasse in attempts to resolve competing sovereignty and
maritime claims by negotiation and the reluctance to resort to third-party
adjudication, proposals for joint development should be considered with
the shared understanding that these initiatives will be without prejudice to
their respective claims on unresolved sovereignty and territorial disputes.
Proposals calling for parties to set aside sovereignty disputes to pursue joint
development or other cooperative mechanisms have long been mooted.
Very few of these initiatives were being taken seriously because some of the
maritime claims remain ambiguous, making it difficult to determine the
actual areas of overlap and likewise potential areas for cooperative efforts.
Tasks Ahead
Singapore will continue to encourage claimant states in the South
China Sea disputes to clarify their claims and bring them in line with
international law, including the 1982 UNCLOS. Different historical
narratives and vexing issues of domestic and nationalistic concern leave
some parties in intractable positions. This interplay of national interests
and international law means that a resolution by negotiation among the
claimants will be very difficult.
While Singapore hopes to shepherd the negotiation of a CoC further
along, the level of trust and confidence between China and ASEAN may
create enough speed bumps to render some of these efforts futile. As the
coordinator of ASEAN-China dialogue relations, Singapore will need to
maintain impartiality and neutrality to be able to steer the whole agenda
ahead with a view toward regional peace, stability, and prosperity and
to create more opportunities for cooperative projects between ASEAN
7 Lee Hsien Loong (8th S. Rajaratnam Lecture, Singapore, November 27, 2015) u http://www.pmo.
gov.sg/mediacentre/pm-lee-hsien-loong-8th-s-rajaratnam-lecture-27-november-2015.
[ 45 ]