Asia-Pacific navies sign agreement

NAVAL officials from the US and two dozen Asia-Pacific nations have adopted an agreement aimed at improving communication at sea to reduce the possibility of conflict amid rising friction between an increasingly assertive China and its neighbours.

The Code For Unplanned Encounters at Sea provides simple instructions to be translated into regional languages that navies can use when they come across ships from other countries.

It's hoped the code will lessen the possibility of collisions or misunderstandings that could lead to conflict in the heavily trafficked sea lanes surrounding China, Japan and Southeast Asia.

Tensions have risen in the region over competing territorial claims, especially over a group of uninhabited islands in the East China Sea that are controlled by Japan but claimed by China.

The agreement, approved unanimously at the Western Pacific Naval Symposium in the eastern Chinese port city of Qingdao, is targeted at "establishing international standards in relation to the use of the sea," according to a text of the agreement provided by a US Navy officer.

Although not legally binding, China's adoption of the code indicates its increased willingness to engage with its neighbours, US Navy officials said.

The US, Japan, South Korea, Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand, Australia, Canada, Mexico, Chile, Peru and several other nations also signed on.

In the China-Japan island dispute, the US has said it takes no side on the question of sovereignty but that it recognises Japan's administration of the chain and has responsibilities to protect Japanese territory under a mutual defence treaty.

Chinese and Japanese ships have come into regular contact in the area since China stepped up patrols near the islands after Tokyo moved to nationalise them in 2012.

The code will be translated into local languages and allow navy sailors to communicate using bridge-to-bridge radio communications.

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