China may try to build new islands or declare part or all of the South China Sea an Air Defense Identification Zone, McCain warned.
Advertisement
Carter stood alongside Philippine Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin as they watched Navy fighter jets launch into the vivid blue skies, about 70 nautical miles west of the island of Luzon.
“We believe that the People’s Republic of China, through its statements, misunderstands or perhaps does not properly appreciate the objective of our activities with the United States”, Presidential Communications Undersecretary Manuel Quezon 3rd said in a radion interview.
He went on to announce that the two countries had commenced joint drills in March, and that the U.S. would begin deploying a rotation of military equipment and troops in the Philippines.
The Stennis has been on a routine deployment in the Western Pacific for three months, said the carrier strike group’s commander, Rear Admiral Ronald Boxall.
“The Chinese Navy will also keep conducting regular drills in the South China Sea, such as passing through the island chains in the region because the maritime operations between Washington and Manila showed that they are likely to cut off Chinese navy’s way out of the region”.
The Chinese, not surprisingly, also criticized the U.S. moves into the Philippines.
“Militarily”, Carter said, “the Department of Defense is operationalizing the next phase of the rebalance and rebalancing it for the long term”. Under a blazing sun, as the heat index pushed past 100 degrees, Carter landed on the Stennis in a Marine V-22 Osprey helicopter.
American congressmen had previously called for China to be disinvited from RIMPAC, the largest global naval exercises in the Pacific under U.S. leadership.
We welcome strong opinions and criticism of our work, but we don’t want comments to become bogged down with discussions of our policies and we will moderate accordingly.
China claims virtually the entire South China Sea as its territory and is building manmade islands there topped with airstrips and other infrastructure.
China claims most of the South China Sea, through which about US$5 trillion (S$6.8 trillion) in ship-borne trade passes every year, by the “nine-dash line” it has marked on maps to define historical borders on which it claims sovereignty.
He added: “With respect to Chinese claims in the South China Sea and to all other parties, the American position is very clear, that these things should be settled peacefully and lawfully”.
Before flying from Manila to visit the ship, Carter emphasised the United States would support the Philippines and other allies as they faced “coercion and intimidation”. The visit to the Stennis comes a day after Carter announced new military aid to Philippines that spurred protests from China.
Why would Carter travel to the South China Sea? Last November, he was on the USS Theodore Roosevelt as it sailed northwest of Borneo.
“Secretary Gazmin also expressed his gratitude to the sailors for taking part in the Balikatan exercises, highlighting the strength of the Philippine-US Alliance”.
“This is the network – peaceful, principled and inclusive – that America continues to stand for and stand with”, Carter said.
Advertisement
“I am pleased to see so many nations interested in working together to promote stability and security in the Asia-Pacific”, he said.
