'SCS to be key issue of discussion at East-Asia Summit, ASEAN'

South China Sea will be a central issue of discussion both at the East-Asia Summit as well as at the ASEAN-US Summit to be attended by US President Barack Obama next week, his top aide said today.
"Obviously, this (South China Sea) will be a central issue of discussion both at the East-Asia Summit as well as at the ASEAN-US Summit and the other engagements that we have throughout our visit to Asia," National Security Advisor Susan Rice told reporters.
"Our view has always been that these disputes need to be resolved through peaceful, legal means, and that the establishment of and implementation of a code of conduct agreed among the leaders of the region, the states of the region and, in particular, the claimants would be a positive step forward," she reiterated in response to a question.

"This, though, is not a US agreement or US code, it's one that would need to be implemented by the parties involved. And I'm confident that this will continue to be something that we and others encourage, but I don't expect it to be a concrete outcome of this particular visit," Rice said ahead of Obama's trip to the region next week.