ASEAN firms up South China Sea stance as Beijing lobbies over statement | Reuters
By Manuel Mogato | MANILA MANILA Southeast Asian countries have altered a statement to be issued at Saturday’s ASEAN summit to include references to militarization and island-building in the South China Sea, the latest draft shows, in a move likely to frustrate Beijing. Chinese embassy representatives in Manila had sought to influence the content of the communique by lobbying Philippine officials, two ASEAN diplomatic sources told Reuters. […]