Economic security tied to South China Sea disputes, says EU

Senior European diplomats said the European Union had a stake in the South China Sea disputes and urged all sides to respect the rule of law, the South China Morning Post reports. Gunnar Wiegand, managing director of Asia and Pacific for the European External Action Service (EEAS), the EU’s foreign affairs department, said at a forum in Beijing that the recent developments in the region were a cause of concern. He noted that half the world’s trade passed through the South China Sea and that the EU’s economic security was closely linked to stability in the Asia-Pacific ­region.