REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- Indonesia is expected to play a mediator's role to bring peace and resolve conflicts among countries, which have overlapping claims over the South China Sea.
"We hope that as a member of the Asian Peace and Reconciliation Council (APRC), Indonesia will become a mediator and brings hope for peace to the South China Sea," Surakiart Sathirathai, the APRC chairman said after a meeting with Vice President Jusuf Kalla here on Monday.
Sathirathai met with Kalla to discuss solutions to the South China Sea conflict.
Both sides discussed efforts to reduce tension in the region and the possibility of the claimant countries to cooperate in the economic field and in the development of the oil and gas resources of the region.
"The APRC sees a good role for Indonesia to offer a solution to achieve peace in the region," Sithirathai added.
He said that the next round of talks would be held in the middle of this year or by year-end. "We should not necessarily wait for the ASEAN Summit. It depends on when Indonesia wants the talks to happen," remarked Sathirathai.
Vice President Kalla expressed confidence that Chinese President Xi Jinping wants his country to smoothen its trade, as an industrial nation. "If a country is willing to facilitate its export and import activities, it must also want a secure and peaceful shipping lane. So, I think China is not likely to try to control the region by force," said Kalla.
According to Kalla, if the sea lanes in the South China Sea are insecure, Chinese exports will drop. "If there is natural wealth (which claimant countries want to exploit) in the region, the best way is to cooperate in the exploration efforts in their respective areas," noted the vice president.
So far, a number of countries have overlapping claims over the South China Sea, including China and ASEAN countries such as Brunei Darussalam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam.
Meanwhile, Reuters reported on Monday that the Philippines has urged China, as a responsible member of the international community, to respect a forthcoming ruling by an arbitration court in the Hague on a territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
China claims almost the entire South China Sea, and is believed to have huge deposits of oil and gas. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims on the waters, through which, about US$5 trillion is shipped every year, in trade.
China refuses to recognise the case lodged by the Philippines with the tribunal and says all disputes should be resolved through bilateral talks.
Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario's comments came after China's foreign minister, Wang Yi, during a visit to the United States, accused the Philippines of indulging in "political provocation" while seeking arbitration to resolve the dispute.
"The Philippines, as well as the international community, is asking China to respect the forthcoming ruling of the arbitral tribunal and together, advance an international rules-based regime," del Rosario said in a statement in Manila.
"If China does not heed our collective call, does it mean that it considers itself above the law?"
The tribunal's ruling is expected before May, said del Rosario, who leaves office on March 7 for health reasons. Manila and Beijing have met several times to discuss maritime disputes but nothing was resolved, he added.
Wang held talks last week with his counterpart, U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who said China was rapidly militarising the waterway after building artificial islands and deploying fighters and missiles.
Wang defended China's actions as self-defence, but said it would remain open to two-way talks with countries claiming the South China Sea.
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