Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said on Thursday that the ASEAN nations are on the verge of adopting a statement of unity on current East Sea disputes.

Indonesian Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa

He said despite contrary opinions, ASEAN remains united. Speaking to the reporters in Phnom Penh after visiting Vietnam and the Philippines, Natalegawa said he has worked to identify basic ASEAN positions on the East Sea which will dispel the perception that the 10-member group is divided. Natalegawa took the role of mediator after the ASEAN Ministerial Meetings in Cambodia last week failed to reach a common position on the sea dispute, the first time in the bloc’s 45-year history that ASEAN couldn’t issue a joint statement of its meetings.