ASEAN leaders urge non-militarisation of South China Sea in summit with China

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Oct 28 (Reuters) – Leaders from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) urged non-militarisation and self-restraint in the South China Sea in a summit with China on Thursday, the bloc’s chair Brunei said.

“We emphasised the importance of non-militarisation and self-restraint in the conduct of all activities by claimants and all other states,” Brunei said in a statement.

In the meeting, some ASEAN leaders raised issues related to several incidents in the South China Sea that have eroded trust and confidence, and increased tensions, Brunei said.

(Reporting by Ain Bandial and A. Ananthalakshmi; Editing by James Pearson)

((ananthalakshmi.as@thomsonreuters.com; Twitter: @AnanthalakshmiA;))