Southeast Asian leaders have called for an immediate end to conflict in the Middle East and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, as well as the ratification of a common oil-sharing pact within the 11-nation ASEAN bloc.
In a statement issued Friday following the 48th ASEAN Summit in Cebu, regional leaders “expressed serious concern over the rapidly evolving situation in the Middle East” and its impacts on “regional and global peace and stability.”
“We urged all parties involved to maintain conditions conducive to the full and effective implementation of the ceasefire, exercising maximum restraint, ceasing all hostilities and avoiding any acts that could aggravate the situation,” the statement said.
The bloc’s statement also affirmed “the importance of maintaining maritime safety and security” and freedom of navigation, and “called for the restoration of safe, unhindered and continuous transit passage of ships and aircraft through the Strait of Hormuz.”
The closure of the strait led to a sudden rise in oil and gas prices from the Middle East. This has had particularly serious consequences in Asia, which sources around 60% of its crude oil imports from the Gulf. Most countries in Southeast Asia are now facing significant increases in fuel and energy costs, likely to drive up prices of food and other essential goods.
ASEAN leaders discussed the economic ramifications of the conflict, emphasizing “the need to preserve the free flow of energy and essential goods, including food, agricultural inputs, pharmaceuticals and transport fuels.”
They also pledged to coordinate more closely to safeguard the region’s energy and food security. This included “the expeditious completion of national processes towards the ratification of the ASEAN Petroleum Security Framework Agreement (APSA) to ensure its earliest possible entry into force”. The APSA is a voluntary, commercial framework that would enable “coordinated emergency fuel sharing and collective responses to supply disruptions,” Philippine Commerce Secretary Cristina Roque said last month.
The Philippines, as chair of ASEAN this year, has been particularly active in promoting APSA. The country also has a strong incentive to conclude this agreement. In late March, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. declared a “national energy emergency,” citing the “imminent danger” posed by the disruption of oil supplies from the Middle East, and the country saw the largest rise in gasoline and diesel prices of any ASEAN country.
ASEAN member states are exposed to varying degrees from the Hormuz oil supply shock, but have so far taken a number of steps to counter its impact, including measures to conserve energy, absorb supply shocks, and/or reduce demand for gasoline and other fuels.
Speaking to reporters on Friday, Marcos expressed optimism that member states would soon ratify the APSA, but that the exact mechanics of the agreement still needed to be worked out.
“We’re trying to look at everything we can do,” he said. “How does the sharing happen? Who gets what? How do you pay for this? Do you pay for this? Is this an exchange? … We’ve never done this before. And what do we do for others who are also in need? Who comes first? These are the questions that still need to be answered.”
Aside from APSA, yesterday’s statement did not move much beyond previous statements issued by ASEAN expressing concerns over the Iranian conflict and calling for greater regional coordination in response.
The bloc’s economy ministers said Thursday they had identified “practical and concrete response measures to strengthen energy security, safeguard food security and coordinate humanitarian responses.” But as Reuters noted, those proposals “lacked specific details and it was unclear what steps, if any, could be taken.”
It is certain that it will not be easy to coordinate energy supply measures between 11 countries with varying levels of economic development and dependence on energy imports – especially when countries feel obliged to solve the problem on their own. However, if the crisis extends beyond the short term, it may well constitute an important test of ASEAN’s ability to act in the collective interest of its member states.