India Tells Asean It Believes in 'Open' South China Sea

India shares the concern of the Association of South-East Asian Nations (Asean) in ensuring that the South China Sea, home to the hotly disputed Spratly Islands, remains open for trade.

"South China Sea is one of the most important routes for trade.

It is India's desire that it continues to retain that basic precepts," Foreign Minister SM Krishna (picture) told a group of Asean journalists in New Delhi.

He said trading routes, traditional and non-traditional, have to be honoured.

"Nobody can own a particular sea, there are international conventions. They demarcate certain maritime boundaries. Beyond that, international conventions come into operation," he said in response to a question on the overlapping claims on the Spratlys.

Krishna met the Asean journalists covering Delhi Dialogue IV, the fourth edition of the engagement between India and the region that began in 2009. Malaysia was represented by deputy foreign minister Senator A Kohilan Pillay.

The two-day dialogue themed "India and Asean: Partners for Peace, Progress and Stability" ended yesterday.

Malaysia is one of the six Asian nations that have staked a claim on all or part of the Spratlys, which are believed to be rich in natural resources. The others are Brunei, China, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam.

In the recent past, it has been reported that the Philippines and Vietnam have accused Chinese vessels of repeatedly intruding into areas they claim and of trying to sabotage oil explorations in their territorial waters.

On its part, China has denied the allegations and claims its sovereignty over the area. Krishna noted that at an earlier Asean meeting, Asean ministers had "pointedly" raised the issue with China.

In one meeting, he said the China side had assured Asean that it was in China's interest also to see that the routes should remain uninterrupted.

The just-retired US Navy's top commander in the Pacific had voiced his concerns that local arguments in disputed oil rich waters near the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea could escalate into larger, more serious confrontations.

Admiral Patrick Walsh said there's potential for an incident in the South China Sea to intensify much the way tensions between China and Japan spiked after ships belonging to the Asian powers collided near the Senkaku or Diaoyu islands claimed by both nations in 2010.

On India-Asean relations, Krishna said: "Our relations, both as a group and bilaterally between nations, have been going on well."