Australia earmarks US$42 million for Asean security pact: ‘we face destabilising, provocative, coercive actions’

Australia said on Monday that Indo-Pacific and Southeast Asian countries are facing serious defence threats as it set aside more funds for a maritime security pact with Asean member states during a summit with the Southeast Asian bloc.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Australia would invest A$64 million (US$41.8 million) over four years, including A$40 million in new funding, which would contribute to the security and prosperity of the region, consistent with the priorities of Southeast Asian countries.

“We face destabilising, provocative and coercive actions including unsafe conduct at sea and in the air,” Wong said in a speech at the summit, adding free and open sea lanes in the South China Sea was critical for the region’s trade.
We face destabilising, provocative and coercive actions including unsafe conduct at sea and in the air
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong

“What happens in the South China Sea, in the Taiwan Strait, in the Mekong subregion, across the Indo-Pacific, affects us all.”

China claims almost the entire South China Sea, a conduit for more than US$3 trillion of annual ship-borne commerce, including parts claimed by the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei. The Permanent Court of Arbitration in 2016 said China’s claims had no legal basis.