Summit to urge 'self-restraint' in South China Sea: Draft

Kuala Lumpur: A Southeast Asian summit will urge "self-restraint" in the South China Sea but avoid directly criticising Chinese actions that have fanned tensions in the contested waters, a diplomatic source with knowledge of a draft statement said on Friday.

Leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) gather in Malaysia on Monday for an annual meeting expected to include discussion of efforts underway by China to create islands on fragile coral reefs whose ownership is disputed.

The draft will stress the need for "exercising self-restraint in the conduct of activities, not to resort to threat or use of force, and for the parties concerned to resolve their disputes/differences through peaceful means," the diplomatic source told AFP.

It also calls for discussions with Beijing on a binding Code of Conduct (COC) governing behaviour in the South China Sea "to be intensified, to ensure the expedition of the establishment of an effective COC," the source said.

ASEAN has pushed China for more than a decade to agree on a code of conduct, which would build on a non-binding 2002 pledge by countries with competing claims to the waters to resolve disputes peacefully and refrain from inflaming the situation.

But in separate comments, Malaysia's foreign minister said China's creation of islands on disputed coral reefs would be high on the agenda of the meeting Monday in Kuala Lumpur.

Anifah Aman told reporters that leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) would include "of course, our concerns about the land reclamation that is going on".

China's actions on islets claimed by the Philippines have outraged Manila and fuelled regional concerns over Beijing's increasingly assertive claims to virtually the entire South China Sea.

Satellite photos emerged this month showing a flotilla of Chinese vessels dredging sand onto Mischief Reef, adding to concerns China is building a more permanent presence far out into the South China Sea from which it can project its growing might.

Beijing is also widely believed to be dragging its feet on binding rules that could impede its freedom of action at sea.

Anifah said the regional bloc has conveyed to China that "we want this to be speeded up and we hope they will give us a positive response".

The Philippines has expressed hopes the meeting in Malaysia will result in a robust expression of ASEAN concern. The draft statement could change based on discussions at the summit.