Addressing a press conferencefollowing talks with his Philippine counterpart Benigno Aquino III inManila, the Philippines on May 23, Yudhoyono affirmed the stance ofIndonesia and ASEAN of peacefully settling disputes without use of forceand with respect to international law.
Earlier, IndonesianForeign Minister Marty Natalegawa said his country will do its utmost toease the current tension in the East Sea, after China illegallystationed its Haiyang Shiyou-981 drilling rig in Vietnam’s waters.
He underlined the need for peace talks,without the use of force or threat of using force, to solve disputesbased on cooperation to bring the East Sea issue under control.
Accordingto the FM, tensions between Vietnam and China are not only a bilateralissue, but also a regional matter, so ASEAN should take specialresponsibility to ensure both sides enter talks for a settlement.
He affirmed that China’s act obviously violated the Declaration onthe Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC), despite Beijing oftensaying that it is committed to implementing the declaration.
On May 2, China stationed the rig at 15 degrees 29 minutes 58 secondsnorth latitude and 111 degrees 12 minutes 06 seconds east longitude.The location is 80 nautical miles deep inside Vietnam’s exclusiveeconomic zone.
Chinese shipshave repeatedly rammed and fired water cannons into Vietnamese coastguard and fisheries surveillance ships which are carrying out their lawenforcement missions in Vietnam’s waters, leaving many Vietnamese boatsdamaged and many officers injured.-VNA