Indonesia yesterday warned leaders, including US Vice President Kamala Harris, Chinese Premier Li Qiang (李強) and Russian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Lavrov, against sharpening rivalries as they wrapped up an East Asia summit in Jakarta.
The meeting brought Washington and Beijing into contact a day after Li warned major powers must manage differences to avoid a “new Cold War,” and ahead of the G20 summit in New Delhi tomorrow and on Sunday that Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) is to miss.
Interactions between the officials from the world’s top two economies are being closely watched as they seek to control tensions that risk flaring anew over issues ranging from Taiwan to ties with Moscow, and the competition for influence in the Pacific.
Photo: AFP
“Every leader has an equal responsibility to not create new conflicts, to not create new tensions, and at the same time we also have a responsibility to lower heated tensions,” Indonesian President and ASEAN chair Joko Widodo said in closing remarks.
“I can guarantee you that if we are not able to manage differences, we will be destroyed,” he added.
Harris spoke about “Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine,” maritime challenges in the South and East China seas and the growing threat of North Korean missile programs, US Assistant Secretary for East Asia and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink told a briefing.
However, a leaders’ statement seen by Agence France-Presse (AFP) omitted any mention of the waterway or the Ukraine war.
A Southeast Asian diplomat, who declined to be identified, told AFP a draft paragraph in the leaders’ statement referring to the South China Sea was rejected.
“China objects of course and this is a negotiated text. This is also why there is no Ukraine paragraph because Russia objects,” the diplomat said.
Lavrov spoke of the risks of the “militarization of East Asia,” accusing the NATO alliance of moving into the region, the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement yesterday.
A chair statement released by Indonesia said each country “reiterated our national positions” on the Ukraine war in the meeting, and “reaffirmed our shared commitment to safeguarding and promoting peace, security and stability in the South China Sea.”
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol told leaders at the meeting that any attempts to change the status quo in the South China Sea were “unacceptable,” and called for a “rules-based maritime order,” his office said.
Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said regional powers must oppose the “dangerous use of coast guard and maritime militia vessels” in the disputed waterway, according to his speech released by the presidential palace.
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