The US military conducted “freedom of navigation” operations against 13 countries a year ago, including India and China, according to an annual Pentagon report.
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Beijing seeks to keep the South China Sea off of the agenda at multilateral forums, but other claimants, such as the Philippines, have sought to raise the issue at ASEAN summits.
“The goal is to convince China that its national security interests will be best promoted by participating in regional rule making, abiding by global rules and using its substantial new economic and military power to promote regional security”, said Bower in an article for the Asia & Pacific Policy Society.
In March this year, the USA and Philippines started holding joint patrols in the South China Sea, while eight military bases in the Philippines were made accessible to US forces, who have also gained footing in two air bases in Pampanga, which was over 300km from the shoal.
China’s Foreign Ministry also accused the USA of “hyping up” recent military flights around Huangyan Island.
The four countries say territorial disputes are not an issue between China and the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations and should be resolved by parties directly.
And during talks with President Barack Obama in Washington past year, Chinese President Xi Jinping was reported to have pledged not to militarize the Spratlys region.
Tensions in the South China Sea are rising, pitting China against smaller and weaker neighbors that all lay claim to islands, coral reefs and lagoons in waters rich in fish and potential gas and oil reserves.
And Chinese media have warned repeatedly that the U.S.’s tough response to its reclamation was likely to lead to more militarization in the area, though Beijing says its deployment of planes and missiles on Woody Island in another island chain, the Paracels, is purely for defensive purposes.
Hugo Swire, British minister of state for the Foreign Office, told a Washington think tank that growing tensions in the South China Sea are driven by China’s assertive actions.
Speaking at an event for business leaders in Tokyo, Foreign Minister Kishida said many countries were nervous about what he called, “a rapid and opaque increase in (China’s) military spending and unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the East and South China Seas under the aim of building a strong maritime state”.
No matter how complicated and volatile the external situation is, China will always pursue good neighborliness toward Laos and eye Laosas its good neighbor, good friend, good comrade and good partner so as to further develop the comprehensive strategic cooperation partnership and score new achievement in this regard, Wang said. “He wants to be seen as bold enough to stand up to the Americans”.
China’s Defense Ministry said in a statement on its website late on Monday that it was deeply concerned by such operations.
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The South China Sea problem is not a China-ASEAN dispute and it “should not affect China-ASEAN relations”, the ministry said in a statement, referring to their agreement.
