A senior commander of the Chinese navy has accused China of creating so-called military zones in close proximity to the artificial islands it has built in the South China Sea, terming Beijing’s actions as measures that are deteriorating the security situation of one of the busiest waterways in the world.
While giving a speech in Honolulu on Monday, Admiral Scott H. Swift of the United States Pacific Fleet stated that commercial ships that once sailed freely through international shipping lanes, are now forced to divert from areas which Chinese government deems to be too close to the artificial islands built in the Spratly archipelago.
Swift, who made a visit to China last month, says that the regular commercial and military operations taking place in the South China Sea are warning signs and that they are being an impediment to the freedom of navigation, as well as air rights to such an extent that Chinese activities are becoming unacceptable.
Swift feels that Chinese adventures in the South China Sea have forced the other claimants of the disputed waters to spend more money on self-defense which as a result, threatens to bring the region close to an arms race, the likes of which has never been witnessed before.
And although Chinese President, Xi Jinping has stated that Beijing has no intention of pursuing coercive policies to meet its ends, the admiral feels that what the country has done in South China Sea, is totally opposite to the statements the president made during a state visit to USA back in September this year.
The disputed sea route has become one of the most serious strategic issues between Beijing and Washington in the past few months largely because Chinese maritime maneuvers in the disputed waters threaten American supremacy in the Pacific – something that was more or less unthinkable just a few years back. Today, China boasts a strong naval presence which is changing the status quo.
Moreover, it is unlikely to see China giving any sort of leeway to anyone since the waterway holds significant importance to the country – both militarily and commercially. Almost 75 percent of its oil imports arrive by sea according to China Energy News.
Admiral Swift said that fishermen from the region were also threatened.
“Intimidated by the manner in which some navies, coast guards and maritime military enforce claims in contested waters, fishermen who trawled the seas freely for generations are facing threats to their livelihoods imposed by nations with unresolved, and often unrecognized, claims,” he said.
In October, the United States dispatched a guided missile frigate, the Lassen, on a freedom-of-navigation patrol within the 12-nautical-mile limit of Mischief Reef, one of the new artificial islands in the Spratly archipelago claimed by China. Other claimants of reefs and islands in the Spratlys include Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam.
However, the Chinese government is not worried about the manner of the speech, stating that by using terms such as “some country”, US is deliberately exaggerating tensions in the region with an aim to create a chaotic situation in the region.
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