Chinese vessels are seen around Fiery Cross Reef in the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. (Photo : Reuters)
China and ASEAN member countries should still pursue cooperation despite the incoming international ruling on the case filed by the Philippines against the Middle Kingdom, an expert said.
Talking to CRIEnglish, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences' Xu Liping deemed cooperation as the only way for China and neighboring countries to resolve conflict brought about by the maritime grapple in the South China Sea.
Xu's statement comes just days after an editorial from Aljazeera highlighted China's failure in solidifying allegiance with peripheral countries when it started claiming territories.
Peripheral Countries
On June 9, Richard Javad Heydarian of Aljazeera said that China has been tearing itself apart from its neighbors three years after Chinese President Xi Jinping vowed to "promote China's political relationship with peripheral countries, solidify economic bonds, deepen security cooperation and intensify cultural exchanges between China and peripheral countries."
Heydarian, an expert in geopolitical and economic affairs, explained that China's quest to claim territories is leading to "festering maritime spats" that undermined the fragile peace in the region.
"Having completely dominated the Paracel chain of islands in the northern portions of the South China Sea, China has begun to assert its dominance across the whole waterway," he said, adding that China has since asserted its claim over the entire waterway that serves as a path to trillions of dollars worth of trade in the region.
Since then, the country has stepped up efforts to make its claim known, including sending a fishing militia to the area, strengthening aerial interception, and urging Western nations like the United States to back off from the dispute.
Diplomacy and Cooperation
Now, a Chinese expert is saying that China and ASEAN countries should still cooperate if they want to retain the relative peace.
Xu explained that the mere existence of the arbitration case "undermined the efforts to implement some cooperation projects between China and ASEAN."
"Bordering each other, the two sides have signed agreements to form a free trade zone and enhance investment, but all of them have been affected (by the arbitration case) more or less," he said.
He further noted that such case that brought China to trial proved to be not beneficial for the ASEAN and called the arbitration unfair.
"But in the eyes of some ASEAN countries, China's refusal to accept the ruling is a proof that it bullies a small country with its might," he added. "This impression will do harm to the China-ASEAN relationship, mutual trust, and economic cooperation as well. However, both sides should keep this in mind that cooperation benefits both sides the most."
He also mentioned that the United States is trying to take advantage of the situation through the arbitration in order to control the ASEAN countries to serve as its "chess piece."
