SOUTH CHINA SEA DISPUTES

That this House notes with concern the escalation of the South China Sea disputes; recognises that there are numerous territorial claims; welcomes the Chinese foreign ministry's statement that it will not use force to settle the disputes; further welcomes calls by theAssociation of Southeast Asian Nationscountries to resolve the disputes through peaceful means drawing on the United Nations Charter and international laws, the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea; calls for concerned parties to refrain from further complicating the situation in the region; and further calls for bilateral and multi-lateral approaches to resolving the South China Sea disputes peacefully and to restore stability to the region.