President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr. has called on the member states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations to hasten the negotiations on the ASEAN-China Code of Conduct (CoC) amid the increasing tensions and territorial disputes in the South China Sea.

“In our view, there should be more urgency in the pace of the negotiations for the ASEAN-China Code of Conduct,” Marcos said during his intervention at the 27th ASEAN-China Summit in Laos.

He said the “core elements of the CoC, such as the milestone issues of geographic scope, the relationship between the CoC and DoC, and its legal nature that to this day remain outstanding” are critical to addressing the maritime disagreements in the SCS.

“It is time that we tackled these milestone issues directly so we can make substantive progress moving forward,” he said.

The President had earlier brought up the South China Sea dispute and stressed the Philippines’ fidelity to the rule of law and international rules-based order.

Citing the country’s sovereign claim to a portion of the SCS, Marcos highlighted the Philippines’ adherence to the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) and the 2016 Arbitral Award in its efforts to address and manage its territorial dispute with China.

“I didn’t specify the details but it is just the general principle of the adherence to the rule of law and the UNCLOS. Just as a general theme,” Marcos told reporters who asked if he had brought up the South China Sea issue during the ASEAN retreat session.

Marcos lamented that the overall situation in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) “remains tense and unchanged” despite the Philippines’ recent engagement with China through a Bilateral Consultation Mechanism on the SCS.

Dangerous actions

He said the Philippines “continued to be subjected to harassment and intimidation” by the Chinese.

He cited several incidents where the lives of Filipino navy and coast guard personnel were placed at risk due to the China Coast Guard’s dangerous actions in the WPS.

Marcos also raised the intimidation by China’s gray ships of the Philippines’ civilian vessels and aircraft conducting “legal maritime operations’ in the WPS.

“The parties must be earnestly open to seriously managing the differences and to reduce tensions,” he said.

Marcos pointed out that China’s continuing aggression within Philippine waters “demonstrates its continued disregard for international law and standards, particularly UNCLOS and the 1972 Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea.”

“Such behavior is not unnoticed by our respective publics and the international community, that they will require a concerted and urgent effort to adopt measures to prevent their recurrence,” he said.

Despite the intimidation by China, Marcos reaffirmed the Philippines’ unwavering commitment to deepening and extending ASEAN-China relations “in a comprehensive manner, thereby contributing further to the region’s long term peace, development and cooperation.”

Boosting ASEAN connectivity

Marcos also urged the ASEAN leaders to improve the bloc’s relations with external partners and uphold the rules-based international order.

He stressed the importance of boosting connectivity and resilience in the region to ensure its preparedness for emerging challenges and for future shocks.

“As we chart the path forward for our region, let us harness to the fullest the strength of our external relationships, which play a pivotal role in enriching ASEAN community-building,” he said.

“We will continuously strengthen our engagement with our external partners to reinforce ASEAN centrality, promote mutual trust, and uphold a rules-based international order that safeguards peace, stability, security, and prosperity for all,” he added.

Digital economy

Marcos also stressed the need for ASEAN members to work together in promoting the digital economy, food security, tourism, women empowerment, and gender equality.

The regional bloc, he said, could lay the groundwork for a “safe and trusted” digital environment, stressing that the digital economy is one of the significant catalysts for connectivity in ASEAN.

Marcos pointed out that digitalization can usher in a new era of innovation, growth, and opportunity.

“With the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework Agreement poised to boost our region’s digital economy to US$2 trillion by 2030, it is critical that we invest in robust cybersecurity protections, equip our people with digital skills, and build the digital infrastructure necessary to secure ASEAN’s path to becoming the fourth largest economy in the world,” he said.

Acknowledging that there are over 70 million MSMEs across ASEAN — accounting for up to 99 percent of all businesses in the regio — Marcos stressed the need to address financing gaps, support digitalization, and enhance the capacities of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to integrate them into global value chains to become key drivers of regional growth.

He called on ASEAN member-states to adopt sustainable agricultural practices to optimize the region’s food systems amid the persistent challenges to food security caused by supply chain disruptions, economic shocks, and the increasing intensity of extreme weather events.

“Southeast Asian leaders must back initiatives that empower and support farming communities and leverage agricultural technological innovations,” he said.

Respect to achieve centrality

Meanwhile, Marcos highlighted the importance of full respect for inter-parliamentary diplomacy to achieve ASEAN centrality.

“It is imperative that inter-parliamentary diplomacy be conducted with full respect for the centrality of ASEAN, in line with our collective vision for the region,” Marcos said during the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) in Laos.

“As the linchpin of our regional organization, we must uphold this principle in all our engagements as we chart our path for the future,” he added.

AIPA is a center of communication and information among member parliaments, including Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Addressing climate change

Marcos likewise urged the ASEAN states to work together to mitigate the effects of climate change, which he considers the “biggest threat to humanity and the future of ASEAN.”

“Our region remains one of the most vulnerable to climate change and our resilience will continue to be tested by this perennial challenge,” he said.

He said ASEAN must likewise focus on the intersection of climate change and biodiversity.

“Protecting our rich biodiversity is essential to maintaining the ecosystems that support all of our lives. To this end, the Philippines has increased its funding for the ASEAN Centre for Biodiversity by 25 percent this year, in order to support efforts on the conservation and management of the region’s biological diversity,” he said.