China, U.S. play down tensions at Asian security summit

Hillary Clinton to address Asean summit

 

Mrs Clinton arrived in Bali overnight on Thursday

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is to address leaders and diplomats at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit in Bali.

Her visit comes after discussions by Asian ministers over an increasingly tense territorial dispute in the South China Sea.
She is also expected to speak about North Korea's nuclear programme and the situation in Burma.
Top diplomats from Europe and Asia are attending the gathering.
Chinese ire On Thursday, leaders at Asean agreed a deal with Chinese officials aimed at establishing guidelines for talks on the South China Sea, a regional dispute which has led to a number of confrontations in the past.
China, the Philippines, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan all have overlapping claims to all or parts of the area, which is thought to contain significant oil and mineral reserves.

It will take strong efforts and goodwill on all sides to improve the circumstances among the claimants in the South China Sea”

Kurt Campbell US diplomat

US officials said Mrs Clinton would push leaders to formalise the deal and offer American support for the process.

"It will take strong efforts and goodwill on all sides to improve the circumstances among the claimants in the South China Sea," said Kurt Campbell, the top US diplomat for Asia.More...