KYODO NEWS
 
Japan and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations will agree to enhance cooperation among them to create a "more peaceful and stable security environment" in the region, a Japan-ASEAN diplomatic source said Thursday, an implicit reference to disputes in the South China Sea.
 
The statement, designed to reaffirm the common positions of Japan and ASEAN in regional and global challenges, including maritime security, will be issued at an annual Japan-ASEAN summit next week in Naypyitaw, the capital of ASEAN chair Myanmar.
 
A draft of the statement shows Japan and ASEAN leaders at the summit would share a common view disputes have to be addressed peacefully without use of force and by exercising self-restraint and avoiding actions that would complicate the situation, the source said.
 
Japan has been trying to bolster security ties with ASEAN amid China's assertiveness in the East and South China seas.
 
Tensions over maritime territorial disputes in East and South China seas have been the most troublesome for the relationship among the countries in the region in recent years.
 
Some ASEAN member states such as Vietnam and the Philippines are embroiled in territorial disputes with China.
 
The draft statement does not, however, single out China but the wording clearly has Beijing in mind, according to the source.
 
The diplomatic source said the draft statement also shows the leaders would agree on cooperation in the areas of disaster management, emergency response, and humanitarian assistance, as well as energy security.
 
Close cooperation in the area of disaster management would be committed as both regions have experience of natural disasters.
 
Energy cooperation would be by means of technology transfer, and joint research on new and renewable energy "including civilian-use nuclear energy" to tackle energy security, the source quoted the draft as saying.
 
In the draft, the leaders would also express "concern" over launching of ballistic missiles by North Korea, while touching upon humanitarian concerns of the international community, the source added.
 
ASEAN groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.