A VIETNAMESE diplomatic expert said China is aggressively using its military power and ambiguity by not clarifying its claims and dividing members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) to prevent the regional bloc to adopt a binding code of conduct to stop its military intrusions.

Tran Truong Thuy, director of the Vietnam Center for East Sea Studies, said there is a need to counter China’s “charm” and offensive approaches in dealing with the disputes in the South China Sea as Beijing continues to “control the South China Sea strategically and economically.”

He said Beijing is taking advantages of ambiguity or the lack of legal foundation (for its claim) as it refuses until now to clarify its claim and maintain its 9-dash line claim of historical claim over the entire South China Sea, which it calls the Nansha Islands.

“China is also opposed to multilateralism as it prevents discussions on South China Sea disputes in any regional and international forum, said Tran, as he stressed that Beijing instead uses  “the divide and rule [tactic] in dealing with Association of Southeast Asian Nations members targeting nonclaimant countries like Burma, Laos, Cambodia and Thailand.”

Four Asean members—the Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam and Brunei­—are claimants to parts of the disputed islands of South China Sea. The other Asean members are Singapore and Indonesia.

Tran is one of the resource speakers at the two-day Forum on the South China Sea held at the Manila Polo Club in Makati. He is also a member of the advisory board on the South China Sea issues of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Vietnam.

He said although China’s military approach to control near seas, denial of access to its occupied territories and modernization of its navy reflect its approach of “displaying charm” without preparing for war or “win without fighting.”

Aileen Baviera, head of Asian Studies of the University of the Philippines, said the government should push for “bolder unilateral claims” instead of its consistent calls for multilateral cooperation at the diplomatic level.

She said the “luxury of talking tough is left to those carrying the tiniest stick, in that case, the Philippines.”

Baviera said the government’s rules-based approach should be supported but Manila also has to deal with the “might makes right” approach of bigger claimants such as China.

Foreign Undersecretary for Special and Ocean Concerns Jose Brillantes Jr. said the proposals to settle the South China Sea issue provided in the forum “move the situation away from the possible armed conflict” in the region.

He agreed to a consensus among the stakeholders to conduct a joint activity in shelving the more sensitive issues of sovereignty and territorial claims and focus on maritime research, environmental safety, as well as search-and-rescue projects.

US Ambassador Frank Wisner, former undersecretary of state for international security affairs, and now an international affairs adviser said the US government is concerned over the “loss of diplomatic traction” now leading to increased assertions of claimant-countries and exploration for hydrocarbons.

“The United States looks to the nations of this area to find diplomatic solutions to differences,” said Wisner during the forum. “At the same time, it is committed to maintaining a robust military presence in Asia and will support its allies. It will maintain capabilities sufficient to deter conflict.”

He urged stakeholders, particularly Asean  and China, to speed up the adoption of the binding Code of Conduct.

“The time is right for tempers to cool and diplomatic engagement to take over. A Code of Conduct is needed,” said Wisner.

Former Chinese Ambassador to the United Nations Chen Shiqui, meanwhile, maintained that addressing disputes in the South China Sea require bilateral negotiation and consultation.

He stressed that there should be “no involvement by any external forces in the South China Sea disputes.”

“Internationalizing the South China Sea issue is undesirable, as that will only further complicate the situation,” Chen said.

Although maintaining China’s territorial claim over the entire  disputed parts of the South China Sea, Chen said claimant-countries “should make joint efforts to transform the South China Sea into an area of peace, stability, cooperation and development.”