China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi (2nd L), Singapore’s Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan (2nd R), Vietnam’s Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh (L) and Philippines’ Foreign Secretary Perfecto Yasay (R) join hands as they pose for a group photo during the Asean-China meeting on the sidelines of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations annual ministerial meeting and the Regional Security Forum in Vientiane on July 25. Southeast Asian nations were deadlocked on July 24 about how to confront China’s territorial claims in the South China Sea as pressure from Beijing again drove a wedge between countries on the region’s toughest security challenge. AFP
