Subject
ASEAN-China security cooperation.
Significance
China-ASEAN security cooperation has moderated the assertiveness Beijing displayed in the South China Sea during the first half of this year. In October, China and the ASEAN states held their first ever joint naval exercise.
Impacts
The verbal statements on regional maritime security cooperation will increasingly be followed by concrete actions.
Negotiations over a Code of Conduct for the South China Sea will advance slowly and contentiously.
China-Philippines joint energy explorations in the South China Sea will remain hamstrung by Philippine constitutional conditions.