Foreign ministers of ASEAN and China recently reached a negotiating framework for a Code of Conduct (CoC) in the South China Sea during ASEAN’s 50th anniversary leaders meeting in Manilla in August. The CoC is intended to be a set of rules to guide the conduct of parties and promote maritime cooperation in the disputed South China Sea.

Dr Nengye Liu was interviewed by the Voice of America (VOA) about this important issue in the Asia-Pacific region. Dr Liu suggests that environmental issues, such as prevention of vessel-source pollution and sustainable fisheries management, should be an essential part of the CoC to provide guidance for the activities of South China Sea coastal states.

Dr Liu was invited by colleagues from the Australian National University’s Crawford School of Public Policy to contribute to an opinion piece for Policy Forum, a leading Asia and the Pacific’s platform for public policy debate, analysis, views, and discussion. In his opinion piece, Dr Liu argues for the establishment of a strong institution to manage South China Sea disputes, he also clarifies the expectations of the CoC in the South China Sea.