China said on Sunday that it would continue to build military and civilian facilities on its artificial islands in the disputed South China Sea and that the United States was testing it by sending warships through the area. This also includes military facilities to protect the islands and reefs, which are located far from mainland China, he said.
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This has caused ripples of alarm in much of East Asia about China’s intentions and freedom of navigation in a waterway through which $5 trillion in ship-borne trade passes annually.
In response to a question on the issue of militarization on the South China Sea, spokesman Hong Lei said it is “groundless to link China’s construction on its own islands and reefs in the South China Sea to militarization”.
Earlier this month, U.S. B-52 bombers flew near Chinese artificial islands in the area, signalling Washington’s determination to challenge Beijing over the disputed sea.
The US Navy’s guided-missile destroyer USS Fitzgerald passed through the Spratly Islands on Nov 11, coming within 12 miles of new Chinese bases (bright light, right) in what Washington calls patrols to ensure freedom of the sea.
Obama met yesterday with his Asean counterparts, and a joint statement emerged that stressed the need to maintain freedom of navigation and over-flight in the South China Sea.
China on Saturday pledged infrastructure loans totaling 10 billion US dollars to Southeast Asian countries and proposed railway and production capacity cooperation amid closer partnership with the economically converging region.
Therefore, for the South China Sea disputes to be untangled as soon as possible and for the busy patch of water to keep permanently peaceful, outsiders should withdraw their meddling hands and give full play to the wisdom and pragmatism of those directly involved.
China and the United States engaged in clash over the South China Sea at a yearly meeting of East Asia Summit (EAS) at the Malaysia this weekend.
The ministers, then, “called on all claimants to halt large-scale land reclamation, construction, and use for military purposes”, the statements said, indirectly referring to recent Chinese actions.
Asean groups Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.
The court, set up in 1899 as one of the first global judicial institutions, said it would hear arguments including one contending that several South China Sea reefs and shoals were not a significant enough basis for China’s claims.
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They say Japan’s military needs to be more active to deter China and North Korea and help preserve Japan’s peace and prosperity.
