The long-delayed framework for the Code of Conduct (COC) in the South China Sea may be finally completed by the middle of the year, Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay Jr. said on Wednesday. The Cabinet official said that the Philippines, as chairman of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) this year, will intensify efforts to fast-track the discussions on the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) and eventually complete the COC. The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration last year nullified China’s excessive claims in the contested waters as it upheld the Philippines’ rights to areas within its 200-nautical mile exclusive economic zone, under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.

Delizo, M. J. T. (2017, January 12). Sea code of conduct ready this yr – Yasay. The Manila Times, pp. A1, A2.