Jakarta. Southeast Asian leaders issued a joint statement early on Sunday (30/04) saying mutual trust and self-restraint need to be enhanced to avoid complicating the situation in the disputed South China Sea.

"We reaffirmed the importance of the need to enhance mutual trust and confidence, exercising self-restraint in the conduct of activities and avoiding actions that may further complicate the situation, and pursuing the peaceful resolution of disputes, without resorting to the threat or use of force," the statement said.

The 30th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) summit in Manila, Philippines, ended on Saturday, without producing a clear stance on current conflicts in the South China Sea and Korean Peninsula.

The statement released on Sunday only said that "concerns expressed by some leaders over recent developments in the area" were taken into consideration. It also endorsed full implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties (DOC) in the South China Sea and completion of a code of conduct over the disputed area by mid-2017.

According Reuters, Chinese officials had lobbied the Philippines to refrain from making references to China's island-building and militarization in the region.

An unpublished draft of the statement dated Friday included "land reclamation and militarization," with Reuters reporting that four Asean member states had objected to it being omitted.

In a session on Saturday, President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo asked China to continue its contributions toward stability and peace, adding that he hopes world powers will not take advantage of the region to showcase their military capabilities.

Jokowi also said that he will discuss the situation in the Korean Peninsula when he meets with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Asean's Sunday release reiterated its foreign ministers' statement from Friday, which expressed the support for the denuclearization of North Korea and called for an international dialogue to defuse tensions in the region.