Philippines to hand over chairmanship of ASEAN to Singapore leaving South China Sea Code of Conduct unfinished

Manila, Nov 15 (UNI) The Philippines will end its year as chair of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) without securing a binding Code of Conduct for the South China Sea, despite negotiators reaching provisional agreement on around 80% of the proposed document amid continuing maritime confrontations with China. Foreign Affairs Secretary Theresa Lazaro said on Sunday that the unfinished negotiations would be handed over to Singapore when it assumes the bloc's rotating chairmanship in 2027. "We leave this almost 80 percent finished document to Singapore for the next year," Lazaro told reporters at the end of the first…