BORACAY, PHILIPPINES: Foreign Ministers of the Association of South East Asian Nations are worried about “recent developments” in the South China Sea and urged restraint and dialogue to prevent any escalation, the Philippine foreign secretary said on Tuesday.
“A number of ministers expressed concern over recent developments and escalation of activities in the area which may further raise tensions and erode trust and confidence,” Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay told a news conference after a meeting of his Southeast Asian counterparts.
“At the same time they noted the need to sustain the momentum of dialogue in order to ease tensions in the region.”
Yasay did not say which particular developments had provoked concern.
He also said ASEAN countries were hopeful a framework on a protracted code of conduct would be completed by June, and China too had shown it was keen for it to be completed.
Philippines says ASEAN concerned about recent events in S China Sea
Philippines says ASEAN concerned about recent events in S China Sea
UK warship to leave for Cyprus next week: officials
- HMS Dragon, a Type 45 defense destroyer, will sail to aid Britain’s “defensive operations”
- Opposition lawmakers have accused the government of being too slow to deploy additional resources
LONDON: A UK warship due to be sent to Cyprus amid the US and Israel’s war with Iran will not set sail from Britain until next week, Western officials said Wednesday.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Tuesday that he was deploying HMS Dragon, a Type 45 defense destroyer to aid Britain’s “defensive operations” in the region.
Starmer also said he was sending two Wildcat helicopters with counter-drone capabilities.
The announcement came after several drone attacks from Iran targeted UK allies in the Middle East and after the UK Royal Air Force base Akrotiri was struck overnight Sunday to Monday.
Opposition lawmakers have accused the government of being too slow to deploy additional resources after the war started on Saturday with no British warship in the region.
The destroyer is being resupplied with ammunition and will sail next week, the officials told reporters in London.
“We’ve had to change weapon systems on it, finish welding, get it up and running, and get it sailing as fast as possible,” Defense Minister Al Carns told Sky News.
Its voyage to the eastern Mediterranean is expected to take several days.
Starmer refused to allow the Americans to use UK air bases to launch the initial strikes on Iran on Saturday.
He later agreed to a US request to use two British military bases — one in southwest England and the other in the Chagos Islands in the Indian Ocean — for a “specific and limited defensive purpose.”
The officials said Wednesday that US bombers have not yet used those bases to launch missions but they are expected to do so in the coming days.
They also said that the drone, which caused little damage and no casualties when it hit the runway at Akrotiri, had not been launched from Iran.
A Cypriot government source said Monday that the drones had been launched from Lebanon, “most likely” by Hezbollah, a historical ally of Iran in the Middle East.
