Edited Transcript of Minister for Foreign Affairs Dr Vivian Balakrishnan's Doorstop Interview with Singapore Media at the 30th ASEAN Summit, Manila, Philippines, 28 April 2017

Min: I think we had a very good meeting. A couple of issues obviously predominated. First, all the ASEAN Foreign Ministers were very concerned, in fact gravely concerned, with the situation on the Korean Peninsula. I think the repeated nuclear tests last year and the repeated missile launches this year have escalated tensions considerably. It may be far away from Singapore, but if there’s any miscalculation and if hostilities actually break out, the human price will be horrendous and there will be an enormous impact across the world, including on Southeast Asia. So we issued a statement expressing grave concern and also urging North Korea to comply fully with all its obligations pursuant to the United Nations Security Council Resolutions.

The other issue was the South China Sea. I am glad to say that we were happy with the progress that has been made so far by the Joint Working Group on the Framework for the COC – the Code of Conduct.  At the moment, I have been assured that things are on target.  We hope that by the middle of this year or so, the Framework will be completed. This will be an important confidence-building step; an important step to ensuring that there is a greater sense of cooperation between China, the claimant states within ASEAN, and the rest of us who are not claimant states. I am glad to say that there is good progress.

We also discussed other topics, including the upcoming meeting between Secretary of State of the United States Rex Tillerson and all the Foreign Ministers of ASEAN. This meeting is scheduled for next week. A couple of issues I am sure will come up, apart from the regional ones. One point we want to emphasise is the importance of the United States continuing to engage with our part of the world. ASEAN, as a whole, remains a vital, viable, dynamic and growing area. Frankly, it is an area replete with many business opportunities and the United States should not deprive itself of the opportunities that ASEAN presents.

I also informed my colleagues in ASEAN that when I visited Argentina last month, there is a strong interest in ASEAN on the part of Mercosur. Mercosur is a regional organisation which includes Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay.  They are keen on exploring the possibility of a free trade agreement between Mercosur and ASEAN. We can explore this idea further over the next few months.

CNA: Minister, on the North Korea situation, do you think you could elaborate a bit more on the way forward and the leverage that ASEAN has, given that North Korea had also asked ASEAN for support?

Min: Well, first of all I would say ASEAN does not have leverage. What we have at best is moral suasion, and we join the rest of the world in urging North Korea to comply with the Security Council Resolutions, and for all parties to exercise self-restraint. The key protagonists involved, I hope, will not miscalculate, and will understand that we need a diplomatic solution. We need confidence-building measures on both sides, and not to allow this to spiral out of control. ASEAN is expressing grave concern as a region, which would be subject to both the horrendous human suffering and the economic impact of any conflict on the Korean Peninsula.

ST: And Minister, on the South China Sea, how confident are you that the framework for the COC will conclude this year, and also, how does it take things forward compared to the Declaration of Conduct?

Min: Well, let me set the context first. The key difference between the Declaration of Conduct, the DOC, and the COC, which is the Code of Conduct, is that the Code of Conduct is legally binding. The Framework is the beginning of that process. It sets out the framework for the future COC, and it is an essential prerequisite. I’m reasonably confident that we will get it done by the middle of this year. I think there is a strong sense of common will on the part of all parties to get it done, and it’s important, as I said, in building confidence and reducing the temperature in the South China Sea. The world is not short of crises and issues. We don’t need problems in the South China Sea.

CNA: Minister, sorry. There have been some reports also on the South China Sea that ASEAN will be taking a softer than usual tone compared to the past on this dispute. Would you be able to elaborate on that?

Min: Well, I wouldn’t want to characterise it as a softer or harder tone but I would say that things are moving in a positive direction. The key thing is to get this framework settled and that in turn can lead to further negotiations on a substantive, legally binding Code of Conduct. I don’t want to trivialise it or make it seem easy. It will not be easy. But if we can do this and we can step-by-step make progress in the right direction, we’ll build greater confidence.

LHZB: Minister, sorry. Just wondering, you said that ASEAN doesn’t have any leverage on North Korean issues, of course the Peninsula issue. The thing is ARF is the only platform whereby North Korea actually participates. So, can ARF be some kind of a platform whereby more outreach, more engagement can be done?

Min: I think there’s still a need for dialogue, but the dialogue has to occur primarily amongst the parties most concerned. In this case, the key stakeholders – North Korea itself, its immediate neighbour South Korea, China, and the United States. I’m sure there are conversations going on.  This is where the primary dynamics occur. As I said, for the rest of us, we hope and encourage all parties to exercise self-restraint, and also to uphold international law and compliance with the United Nations Security Council Resolutions. That is as far as we can go. But as far as diplomacy is concerned, the more engagement and the more honest conversation, the better and deeper appreciation of the consequences of getting it wrong.  We need to make sure everyone does not miscalculate, does not overreact, and does not lead us into a path of, as I said earlier, horrendous human consequences. 

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