South China Sea buildup benefits Asia, says Beijing
A senior Chinese naval commander has claimed new islands his country is building in the South China Sea will benefit the region, while stressing that such activities “fall well within the scope of China’s sovereignty.”
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Noting the military usefulness of the islets China is constructing in the disputed Spratly Islands, Adm. Sun Jianguo, deputy chief of staff of the People’s Liberation Army’s general staff, said they would mainly enable China to provide “international public services,” including maritime search and rescue, disaster relief, and scientific research.
“There is no reason for people to play up the issue in the South China Sea,” Adm. Sun said on Sunday at the Shangri-La Dialogue security summit in Singapore, where discussions involving regional defense ministers and military top brass have been completely dominated by the implications of China’s island-building program. The new islands “do not target any other countries, or affect freedom of navigation,” he said. The Philippines and other Southeast Asian countries have expressed alarm at the speed and scope of Chinese reclamation activities.
Malaysian armed forces chief Gen. Zulkifeli Mohd. Zin said Sunday that China should do more to explain its actions and intentions in the South China Sea, after Adm. Sun dodged questions on the subject. “We do not know what they are trying to do,” Gen. Zulkifeli said, referring to Beijing’s island-building activities.
“It would be good if China can come out publicly and announce what they are doing so that they can be seen to be more transparent.” But he also welcomed China’s willingness to keep engaging with rival claimants. “I’m reassured by what (Adm. Sun) said because he said China would continue to work on the Code of Conduct—that means China has not rejected that,” Gen. Zulkifeli said. “It is up to Asean (the Association of Southeast Asian Nations) and the claimant states to help them to do this.”
Adm. Sun struck a nonconfrontational tone as he defended China’s recent track record in the disputed sea, making no reference to U.S. Secretary of Defense Ash Carter’s recent criticisms of China, including remarks last week that China is “out of step with internal norms” in forging ahead with its island-building program despite the objections of its neighbors.
In Singapore yesterday, Mr. Carter called on all South China Sea claimants to halt land reclamation activities immediately. He also asserted that U.S. military forces would exercise their right to freedom of navigation in the South China Sea, and would ignore any Chinese orders to vacate areas surrounding the newly-built islands. But Chinese military officers attending the summit, which is organized annually by the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a U.K.-based think tank, felt yesterday that Mr. Carter had been relatively mild in his criticism of China, and Adm. Sun’s speech suggested there was little appetite for a China-U.S. confrontation at this year’s event.
The exchanges between U.S. and Chinese representatives had been far more acerbic at the 2014 summit. Instead, Adm. Sun limited himself to warning other countries against “making irresponsible remarks based on one’s own subjective preferences,” and advised China’s smaller neighbors to “refrain from hijacking regional security for selfish gains.” He also said that China may set up an ADIZ, or air defense identification zone, in the disputed region. “Whether we will establish an ADIZ in the South China Sea will depend on whether our maritime security will be threatened,” he said.
Adm. Sun didn’t answer a string of questions about whether Chinese rhetoric about seeking win-win scenarios in the South China Sea really matched China’s behavior on the ground, disappointing observers who felt that he had wasted an opportunity to explain Chinese intentions.
“It was not the performance of a rising power that wants to be seen in this region as competing positively,” said Bonnie Glaser,senior adviser for Asia at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a U.S. think tank. “There were a lot of concerns expressed [about China’s activities] here this weekend. If nothing else, the Chinese need to begin answering questions, to engage the region, and they’re failing to do so. They will be very heavily criticized for that.”