Judging by the rapid construction of reinforced hangars at all three facilities, CSIS say this is likely to change.
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Asked if he will bring up the favorable ruling of the United Nations arbitral court in July voiding China’s claim to nearly all of the South China Sea, he replied: “I don’t know what my friends will bring up as a subject matter”. The dispute is complex, involving conflicting claims from the Philippines, Taiwan, Vietnam, Malaysia and Brunei.
In July, an arbitration court in the Hague ruled that China had no historic title over the busy waterway and had breached the Philippines’ sovereign rights with various actions there, infuriating Beijing, which dismissed the case.
Relations between Japan and China have always been strained over their wartime history, a sensitive topic during the summer because of end-of-the-war anniversaries.
Some 230 Chinese fishing vessels and seven coast guard ships, including four apparently carrying weapons, sailed into waters close to the disputed island on Sunday.
The United States has urged China and the other claimants not to militarize their holdings in the South China Sea.
Raising tensions with its neighbours and the USA even higher, China claimed the exercise was created to normalise such drills.
On the other hand, the smallest hangars are 60 to 70 feet wide, enough to accommodate China’s largest fighter jets.
The Japanese government is considering how to deal with the situation, based on the assumption China is trying to promote its proclaimed sovereignty over waters near the Senkaku Islands by having its government ships protect the fishing boats and render the situation a fait accompli, according to sources.
‘They are far thicker than you would build for any civilian objective, ‘ Gregory Poling, director of CSIS’s Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative, told the New York Times, which first reported on the new images.
He also said any decision by China to declare an air defence identification zone over the strategic water body would be “very destabilising from a military perspective”.
“They’re reinforced to take a strike”.
Former Philippine President Fidel Ramos said Tuesday that he wants to focus on points of common interest with China such as tourism and commercial fishing as part of efforts to smooth relations with Beijing roiled by the South China Sea dispute.
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Abe and Chinese Premier Li Keqiang aired their differences at a meeting last month, including over the South China Sea. “Such facilities fit well with China’s strategy to help it deter and constrain U.S. military intervention into the South China Sea”, he told TODAY in an email, adding that Beijing is not targeting the Asean claimant states. The People’s Republic has especially chaffed at USA freedom of navigation sea patrols and flights in the disputed area.
