Brussels, 06/11/2015 (Agence Europe) - During the 12th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) of foreign ministers in Luxembourg on Friday 6 November, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini called for peaceful settlement of the territorial differences in the South China Sea.
At a conference closing the meeting she had chaired, Mogherini said that the EU is an “interested party” in the dispute pitching China against Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Brunei and Malaysia over the control of a crucial sea route. “We are committed to a maritime order based on the principles of international law. We oppose any attempt to assert territorial or maritime claims through the use of intimidation, coercion, force or any unilateral action that could cause further friction”, she said.
According to the chairperson's (Mogherini) final statement, the foreign ministers of the ASEM countries reaffirmed their “commitment to maintaining peace, promoting maritime security and stability, safety and cooperation, freedom of navigation and overflight, and unimpeded lawful commerce, and to combating piracy and armed robbery at sea in full compliance with international law”. The ministers also agreed on the “critical importance of refraining from the use of threat of force, of abstaining from unilateral actions and of resolving maritime disputes through peaceful means” in accordance with universally recognised principles of international law, including the 1982 UN Convention on the law of the sea. The ministers also highlighted “the relevance of confidence-building measures for strengthening trust and security in the region”.
Asia and Europe want binding agreement on climate. Ahead of the UN climate conference (COP 21) in Paris in December, the ministers also expressed their determination, in the final statement, “to play their part in Paris this December in adopting a protocol, another legal instrument or an agreed outcome with legal force (…), applicable to all parties, that reflects the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities and respective capabilities in light of different national circumstances, to come into effect and be implemented from 2020, capable of keeping the world on track for limiting the average surface temperature rise to below 2°C”. “We have agreed on putting all our efforts into making the conference in Paris a success”, Mogherini told press. (Original version in French by Emmanuel Hagry)