China and the United States have conducted competing military exercises in the disputed South China Sea, less than a month after Philippine and Chinese ships collided near a disputed reef in the area.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV and the Chinese military on Thursday released footage of a “live-fire training exercise” at sea involving fighter jets, which coincided with a U.S.-Philippine naval exercise led by the USS. carl vinson aircraft carrier.
Philippine military public affairs office chief Xerxes Trinidad admitted that two Chinese warships were “monitoring” the exercise “from a distance.”
The Chinese government criticized the U.S.-Philippines exercises as a “provocative military activity” in which allied forces are “showing off their military might.” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin warned that the exercise was “harmful to the management and control of the maritime situation and related conflicts.”
“We call on relevant countries to stop their irresponsible actions and sincerely respect the efforts of regional countries to maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea,” Wang said, adding that China “continues to firmly maintain territorial sovereignty and maritime rights.” “I will protect you,” he vowed. And I’m interested. ”
newsweek The State Department was contacted via email for comment.
Competing claims in the sea and its waters have become a major flash point between China and its neighbors, some of which have bilateral defense agreements with the United States, but Washington, D.C. It has repeatedly pushed back against China’s efforts to establish maritime dominance and has taken regular liberties. Conduct navigation exercises in coordination with local and international allies.
China, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines all claim sovereignty over islands and reefs in the sea, mainly classified as the Spratly Islands, Paracel Islands, and Scarborough Shoal. The issue remains a divisive factor in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) bloc, where Beijing has built significant influence.
Beijing has enforced its claims by building a network of militarized islands in the South China Sea and supporting an irregular littoral fleet of large naval forces and civilian fishing vessels to counter competitors.
One such conflict ended in violence last month when a Philippine ship collided with a Chinese coast guard vessel near Second Thomas Reef in the Spratly Islands. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said his country would be “undaunted” by what he called China’s “aggression and provocation.”
China’s coast guard accused the Philippine ship of “deliberately ramming” the Chinese ship after “ignoring our repeated and strict warnings.”
The Philippines is moving closer to the United States amid renewed tensions with China, with U.S. troops returning to the country for the first time in nearly 30 years after the closure of a large U.S. military base.
More broadly, Washington, D.C. is working to strengthen and expand its network of allies in the region, including South Korea, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand, to stem Chinese expansion in the South China Sea and thwart Chinese plans against Taiwan. There is.
Meanwhile, China is using its strong ties with regional countries like Cambodia to thwart joint efforts by competing nations to challenge Beijing’s actions in the South China Sea.
Jam Star Rosa/AFP via Getty Images
Last month, ASEAN foreign ministers issued a joint statement saying they were “watching with concern recent developments in the South China Sea that may undermine regional peace, security and stability.”
“We reiterate the importance of peaceful dialogue that contributes constructively to regional stability and the promotion of cooperation in the maritime field,” the top diplomats said.
President Joe Biden warned in October against any Chinese aggression in the South China Sea. “Let me be clear: America’s defense commitment to the Philippines is ironclad,” the president said while welcoming Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to the White House.
“Any attack on Philippine aircraft, ships, or military forces would invoke our mutual defense treaty with the Philippines,” Biden said.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom, finding common ground and finding connections.