Philippines invites neighbor to frame south China sea conduct rule

Subject: IR

Section: Places in news

Context: Philippines invites neighbor to frame south China sea conduct rule.

More about the news:

The Philippines has initiated discussions with neighboring countries such as Malaysia and Vietnam to create a separate code of conduct for the South China Sea.
President Marcos expressed dissatisfaction with the slow progress in reaching a broader regional pact with China and highlighted the need to collaborate with allies and neighbors to address escalating tensions in the South China Sea.
The move aims to establish a code of conduct outside the ASEAN-China framework and involves countries with existing territorial conflicts, including Vietnam and Malaysia.
China emphasized the importance of formulating a code of conduct but cautioned against any deviation from the existing framework.

More about the South China Sea.

The South China Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean.
The South China Sea is connected by Taiwan Strait with the East China Sea and by Luzon Strait with the Philippine Sea.
Bordering states & territories (clockwise from north): the People’s Republic of China, the Republic of China (Taiwan), the Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam.
The Gulf of Thailand and the Gulf of Tonkin are also part of the South China Sea.
Contesting Claims Over Islands:
- The Paracel Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan and Vietnam.
- The Spratly Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan, Malaysia, Vietnam, Brunei and Philippines.
- The Scarborough Shoal is claimed by the Philippines, China and Taiwan.