The 44th East Asia Summit, which took place in Vientiane, Laos, ended on Friday, October 11, after five days of intensive high-level meetings. The summit included 18 participating countries: the ten ASEAN members (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, The Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam) and eight additional countries: China, Russia, United States, Japan, South Korea, Australia, India and New Zealand.
Some of the main topics discussed during the 44th East Asia Summit were the Middle East conflict, the South China Sea Dispute, and the ongoing Myanmar Crisis.
Concerns Regarding the Middle East Conflict
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed on Friday that there is significant concern in Asia about the potential for the Middle East conflict to escalate further, as the U.N. Secretary-General urged efforts to prevent a full-scale war in Lebanon. Speaking at the East Asia Summit in Laos, Blinken highlighted that the U.S. remains committed to using diplomacy to manage the situation, attributing the rising tensions to what he described as an Iranian-led axis of resistance.
Rising Tensions in the South China Sea
Tensions involving territorial disputes in the South China Sea between the Philippines and China have increased significantly during the last year. The ongoing dispute has heightened fears of escalation, with the Philippines accusing China of acting aggressively. At the same time, Beijing condemns Manila for what it perceives as provocations and breaches of its territorial rights. These tensions could potentially involve the USA, which has a defense pact with the Philippines dating back to 1951.
Russia and China blocked the Southeast Asian nation’s statement
Russia and China rejected a consensus statement proposed for the East Asia Summit, which was drafted by Southeast Asian nations. The main point of contention was the language regarding the disputed South China Sea. The draft, which had been agreed upon by the 10-member ASEAN bloc, was presented at the 18-nation East Asia Summit in Laos on Thursday evening.
ASEAN presented the final draft and framed it as a take-it-or-leave-it proposal. The United States, Japan, Australia, South Korea, and India all indicated their support for the draft. However, Russia and China made it clear they could not, and would not, move forward with the statement.
