Southeast Asia Leaders Warn Of 'Alarming' South China Sea Incidents

Reuters: Amid pandemic, SE Asian nations warn of 'alarming' South China Sea incidents

HANOI (Reuters) - Vietnam and the Philippines warned of growing insecurity in Southeast Asia at a regional summit on Friday amid concerns that China was stepping up its activity in the disputed South China Sea during the coronavirus pandemic.

Both Hanoi and Manila lodged protests with China in April after Beijing unilaterally declared the creation of new administrative districts on islands in the troubled waterways to which Vietnam and the Philippines also have competing claims.

“Even as our region struggles to contain COVID-19, alarming incidents in the South China Sea occurred,” Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte told an online meeting of Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders on Friday.

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Update: Southeast Asia Leaders Sound Alarm on South China Sea Tensions (Bloomberg)

WNU Editor: These warnings are "too little and too late".