For Southeast Asia, the regional seas identified for the purpose of the program was the “East Asian Seas,” referring to the Asean seas in the South China Sea. Sovereignty and freedom of navigation are about to clash in the South China Sea. Actually, the South China Sea serves as a constraint on naval and maritime cooperation in Southeast Asia. The situation described above further limits the opportunity for Asean claimants to agree on common positions vis-à-vis the South China Sea. Be that as it may, the South China Sea also has some unifying potential within Asean.

Source: Manila Times March 10, 2017 18:22 UTC