Asia Pacific 'Cold War' Must be Avoided; China Asserts
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22 February 2023 21:16 WIB
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Qin Gang hoped that there will be no "cold war" in the Asia Pacific region. Qin Gang made the statement in relation to increasing geopolitical tension between China and the United States of America.
During his visit to Jakarta on Wednesday, February 22, 2023, Qin asserted that “A new Cold War or major country rivalry should not take place in our region, the Asia-Pacific. Regional countries should not be forced to pick sides."
"We hope and trust that Indonesia and other ASEAN countries will bear in mind the peace, stability, and prosperity of the region and make independent judgments and choices," Qin said. "We stand against group politics and bloc confrontation," Qin added.
The diplomatic tension between the United States and China in the past years has increased the possibility of a regional conflict. Especially considering the contrasting stand between the two countries on the Taiwan issue.
Recently, Washington accused China of attempted spying using a 'spy balloon' flown over US airspace. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken even decided to cancel his official visit to Beijing due to the incident.
The Philippines, currently receiving military backing from Washington, expressed its strong dislike against what the country calls aggressive maneuvers in the South China Sea by Beijing. President Ferdinand Marcos Jr said last week that the Philippines "will not lose an inch" of territory amid tensions with China.
The South China Sea has been a field of conflict between China and a number of Southeast Asian countries for decades. Currently, ASEAN and China are preparing to start negotiations on a new Code of Conduct (CoC) or new South China Sea ethical guidelines. Indonesia as ASEAN chair this year announced that it would start the CoC negotiations in March 2023.
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