By Liz Lagniton | 2026-01-29

The Philippines is stepping up efforts to conclude a long-stalled Code of Conduct (COC) for the South China Sea as it holds the rotating ASEAN chairmanship in 2026.

Negotiations have faced years of delays due to disagreements over legal standards, enforcement mechanisms and competing maritime claims involving China and several Southeast Asian states. China claims more than 80% of the South China Sea as its territory.

The proposed code is meant to establish rules for managing disputes and reducing risks in the South China Sea -- a shipping lane for one-third of global trade. However, after two decades of discussions, ASEAN and China still have disagreements over its scope, legal status and implementation.

UNCLOS push

The COC should be grounded in international law, Manila is emphasizing as ASEAN chair.

The Philippines will push for explicit references to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in the text, Philippine Foreign Secretary Ma. Theresa Lazaro said.

"The UNCLOS issue is something that we insist on, not only the Philippines, but other ASEAN member states," Lazaro told Reuters on January 22. She added that Manila wanted the code to be legally binding but acknowledged that this would require "further and deeper discussion" among ASEAN partners and China.

UNCLOS formed the legal basis for the 2016 Permanent Court of Arbitration ruling that invalidated China's claims to most of the 80% of the South China Sea.

Even though China rejected the ruling as outside the court's jurisdiction, UNCLOS remains a contentious reference point in COC negotiations.

Manila prefers to handle disputes through diplomatic channels rather than public exchanges, said Lazaro amid recent statements by Chinese and Philippine officials following confrontations at sea.

Amid these talks, the Philippines has strengthened its security ties with the United States, Japan, Australia and Canada. These nations support the 2016 ruling and freedom of navigation -- positions that Beijing criticizes as "external involvement."

Deadline pressure

The framework for regional conduct began with the nonbinding Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in 2002, which set out general principles for managing disputes but lacked enforcement mechanisms.

Formal negotiations on a binding code eventually began in 2017. Progress since then has remained intermittent.

ASEAN's consensus-based decision-making process also affected the pace of talks. Member states have their own strategic priorities and economic relationships with China, ASEAN's largest trading partner. Their differing perspectives complicate agreement on sensitive language.

China consistently prefers direct talks with individual states and insists the code should not involve non-regional actors.

In 2023, ASEAN and China agreed on guidelines to accelerate negotiations, including more frequent meetings, and set a goal of concluding the code within three years.

Last year, Enrique Manalo, the then-Philippine foreign secretary, said the parties were "politically committed" to meeting that deadline.

Manila recently reaffirmed that commitment as the clock ticks. All parties remain engaged in tackling milestone issues and "every round of discussions brings us closer to a document that will have real meaning on the ground," Lazaro told the Japan Times January 18. Manila's goal, she added, is a code that is not only timely but "effective and substantive."

Mirroring this optimism, Dax Imperial, spokesperson for the Philippines' ASEAN chairmanship, stated at a January 27 briefing that all parties are "really bent on" endeavoring to conclude the negotiations within the 2026 timeline to sustain momentum.

The negotiations came amid continued maritime encounters in the South China Sea.

Doubts about COC's impact

Delays in wrapping up the COC may have reduced its impact, Dr. Fitriani, a senior analyst at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute who goes by one name, told GMA News Online.

"It's nice to have but how about the implementation?" she asked, noting countries may rely on "mini-lateral maneuvering" and "coast guard cooperation among like-minded states," along with partnerships with external actors.

On January 29, top Southeast Asian diplomats convened in Cebu City for the first COC negotiations hosted under the Philippine chairmanship. Regional issues like Burma and border disputes appeared on the agenda, but the South China Sea remained a primary focus following a recent surge in maritime confrontations between Chinese and Philippine forces in disputed South China Sea waters.

Manila considers the COC talks a top priority because of that uptick.