The draft Code of Conduct serves as a starting point for the next round of negotiation where specifics will be discussed.
May 18, 2017
‘ASEAN member nations and China completed a draft framework for the code of conduct (COC) in the South China Sea at a senior officials’ meeting on Thursday (May 18).
But it is unclear at this point if the eventual document will be legally binding.
Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin announced the agreement at a press conference after he co-hosted a meeting of the senior officials in Guiyang, capital city of the southwestern Chinese province of Guizhou.’