Vietnamese, Indonesian presidents discuss South China Sea

By Islamuddin Sajid

Leaders of Vietnam and Indonesia Friday discussed disputes in the South China Sea and agreed to strengthen consultation, close coordination, and mutual support at regional and international forums.

President Vo Van Thuong met his Indonesian counterpart, Joko Widodo, in Hanoi during the latter's three-day official visit to Vietnam since Thursday.

Both leaders reaffirmed the importance of peace, stability, safety, security, and the freedom of maritime navigation and aviation in the disputed South China Sea, a statement released by Hanoi said.

Vietnam refers to the massive disputed waterway as the East Sea and shares overlapping maritime claims with China. However, the two sides agreed last year to properly manage their differences at sea.

Hanoi and Jakarta also agreed to closer cooperation in fishing, energy, and digital transition.

This marks the Indonesian president's second stop this week discussing the South China Sea with Southeast Asian leaders.

The Indonesian president, popular as Jokowi, on Wednesday met Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Manila.

Filipino leader said he and Jokowi “affirmed our insistence on the universality” of the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which “sets out the legal framework that governs all activities in the oceans and seas.”

Tensions in disputed waters between the Philippines and China have persisted in recent weeks amid overlapping maritime claims by the two sides.

Territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea involve conflicting island and maritime claims in the region by several sovereign ASEAN nations including Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam. Taiwan also has claims in the disputed waters.

However, China and ASEAN signed the South China Sea Declaration on the Conduct of Parties (DoC) in November 2002, marking the first time Beijing had accepted a multilateral agreement on the issue.

The agreement is yet in the negotiations phase and has not been fully agreed upon by the two sides.