(VOVworld) – Sovereignty disputes in the East Sea could turn violent but China and ASEAN members feel “a sense of urgency” to ease the tension, ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan told reporters in Kuala Lumpur Tuesday. He said he saw “good signs” in the informal ASEAN-China talks this week in Thailand’s Pattaya resort. According to the Secretary, “now both sides are saying they want to get the Code of Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (COC) done as soon as possible because it doesn’t serve anybody’s interest to delay. It’s a yo-yo but at least now they agree to talk”. But he didn’t give details of his expectations from the ASEAN summit, scheduled for November 15 in Cambodia.

ASEAN Secretary General Surin Pitsuwan (Photo: Internet)

ASEAN announced the six-point Principles on the East Sea in late July, which reiterated its members’ commitment to fully implementing the Declaration of Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and quickly completing the COC. Parties vowed to stay calm and settle their disputes on the basis of international law, especially the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.