US Secretary of State John Kerry has addressed a news conference at the ASEAN Foreign Ministers meeting in Vientiane, the capital of Laos.

Kerry warned the Democratic People's Republic of Korea that it faces "real consequences" over its ongoing nuclear and missile testing programme. Kerry also spoke of the importance of boosting development and infrastructure in the Mekong region, incorporating areas of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, without causing environmental damage.

Kerry again emphasised that the US did not take position in favor of any claimant in regard to disputed territory in the South China Sea.