China called for a safer and more stable scenario in the Asia-Pacific region, without an arms race or bloc confrontation, local press reported.

Beijing.- The head of the Chinese Communist Party’s Foreign Affairs Commission and a member of its Political Bureau, Wang Yi, made this appeal during the Foreign Ministers’ Meeting of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), which is taking place in Indonesia.

According to the Xinhua news agency, the senior diplomat urged the other members to adhere to openness and inclusiveness, in addition to promoting common security. In this regard, he opposed the so-called Asia-Pacific version of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) that incites confrontation in the region.

The Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation in Southeast Asia, the purposes of which are largely in line with those of the UN Charter, the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence, and the Spirit of Bandung should govern relations among the States in the area, he added.

Wang urged for multilateralism, pragmatic cooperation, and cooperative security to boost mutual trust and shared benefits.

At another time, the diplomat insisted on the peaceful settlement of regional disputes through friendly consultations between the countries directly concerned, a principle included in the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. (PL)