Twelve countries, led by the United States and including key Indo-Pacific partners, reaffirmed their commitment to a "free and open Indo-Pacific" and defended the rules-based international order, marking the 10th anniversary of the landmark 2016 arbitral tribunal ruling that rejected China's sweeping maritime claims in the South China Sea.

In a joint statement, the governments of the United States, Australia, Canada, Estonia, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, New Zealand, the Philippines, Romania, Slovenia and the United Kingdom reaffirmed their "unwavering commitment to maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific that is peaceful, stable, and rules-based, anchored in international law."