Southeast Asian nations move ahead with plan for navy drills near disputed area of South China Sea

By EDNA TARIGAN and DAVID RISING
Associated Press

JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) — The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is moving ahead with plans for joint naval exercises in September, the first held by countries in the bloc on their own, at a time when several are responding more strongly to increasing Chinese assertiveness in the area. The Indonesian military said Tuesday that ASEAN member countries held an initial planning conference for the joint exercises, to be held near a disputed area of the South China Sea, despite skepticism from Cambodia. China claims the vast majority of the South China Sea, which has brought it into tense standoffs with multiple ASEAN nations as Chinese fishing boats and military vessels become more aggressive in the disputed waters.