The recent flight of two US B-52 bombers near disputed islands in the South China Sea was an act a “serious military provocation”, according to China’s Defence Ministry today.
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US Representative Scott DesJarlais noted the South China Sea peace initiative proposed by President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九) in May, which reiterates Taiwan’s position of shelving disputes and promoting joint resource development in the contested waters – to which Taiwan lays claim – and Taiwan’s inauguration of a newly constructed lighthouse and renovated wharf on Itu Aba this month.
China said two US bombers flew in the airspace near the islands on December 10, putting the country’s military on high alert. The artificial islands consist of three separate islands in the South China Sea that the country claims as part of their territory.
“These states should at least ensure that this region remains stable instead of fanning tensions”, Wang said Saturday in Berlin after meeting with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier.
Hong said China has lodged solemn protests with the United States side and that the U.S. promised an investigation.
In October, the destroyer USS Lassen sailed within the 12 mile territorial limit around several of those artificial islands.
While China understands the concerns of nations from outside the region – a clear reference to the U.S. – Wang said they should “do more to benefit peace and stability and support efforts to find a resolution through talks, and not manufacture tensions or even fan the flames”. Madhav countered and said the Indian Ocean did not belong only to India, but was shared by other countries of the world and similar is the case with the South China Sea. China’s defense ministry says that the bomber was warned multiple times to leave the area.
The latest tension over the South China Sea comes a week after the USA approved a $1.8 billion (1.65 billion euros) arms deal to Taiwan for warships, missiles and amphibious assault vehicles. As is China’s usual practice the Foreign Ministry took a more diplomatic tone.
The main contractor behind the weaponry is Raytheon.
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The U.S. and Japan have expressed alarm at China’s maritime expansion, which they suspect is aimed at extending its military reach, while the Philippines – which calls the area the West Philippine Sea – has taken the quarrel to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in The Hague. USA defense firms are forbidden to sell arms to China.
