Southeast Asian leaders feuded on Monday over how to handle tense maritime territorial disputes with China, overshadowing talks at a regional summit meant to strengthen trade and political ties.
The leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations had hoped to present a united front on the South China Sea row as they host Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and US President Barack Obama for annual talks.
But that effort broke down just before Southeast Asian leaders were scheduled to meet Wen, amid divisions between Chinese ally Cambodia and the Philippines.
Cambodia, this year’s Asean chair, said on Sunday that Southeast Asian leaders had agreed not to “internationalise” the disputes and would confine negotiations to those between the bloc and China.
The apparent deal would have been a victory for China, which has long insisted that it should only negotiate directly with rival countries and that the Philippines should not seek support from the United States.
However Philippine President Benigno Aquino on Monday publicly rebuked Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen, telling his fellow leaders no such consensus had been reached and he would continue to speak out on the global stage.
