Defense ministers from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and its eight partners, including the United States and China, wrapped up their one-day virtual meeting Thursday, with all members reaffirming "the importance of maintaining and promoting peace, security, stability, safety, and freedom of navigation and overflight" in the region.
In the group's first joint declaration since 2013, the ministers agreed to "exercise self-restraint in the conduct of activities and avoid actions that may further complicate the situation, and pursue peaceful resolution of disputes, without coercion, in accordance with international law."
While the declaration made no specific mention of the South China Sea, in a press statement, however, host Vietnam said the ministers agreed "to use peaceful means and abide by the international law to settle divergent issues, especially the issues related to disputes over territory and sovereignty, including disputes in the South China Sea."