American shadow over South China Sea
- Source: Global Times
- [01:30 July 26 2010]
- Comments
Maintaining and playing up regional tensions are typical American ways of keeping a presence and causing interference in disputed areas.
On Friday, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed "concern" over navigation freedom and offered help in facilitating communication in the South China Sea.
Are any of them a major concern in the region at the moment? No. The remarks of secretary Clinton was, of course, made after various US think tanks and media groups created much fanfare about potential clashes that would necessitate the step-in of the US government.
Clinton's words clearly signaled America's strategic intentions in the South China Sea. The US will not put regional interests first. This is something that Southeast Asian countries have to bear in mind. Regional stability will be difficult to maintain if the countries concerned allow themselves to be controlled by the strategic guidance of the US.
China and its neighboring countries have built a consultative mechanism to smooth out disagreements in the disputed water, and the communication channels are open. Conflicts, though they appear sporadically, are expected to be diminished with deeper understanding.
Fully aware of the complexity of the region, China offered a solution of "shelving disagreement and joint development" to help foster trust and move the issue forward. China's objective is clear: to build strategic trust with neighboring countries under China's tolerance and patience.
But that hard-earned trust is under threat with the US intention to meddle in the region, and force countries to choose between China and the US.
With growing economic power, China and the US may encounter more clashes in China's adjacent sea. Few Southeast Asian countries would like to get in the middle of Sino-US tensions, but like many other regions, they are caught in a dilemma: economically close to China yet militarily guarded against China.
Southeast Asian countries need to understand any attempt to maximize gains by playing a balancing game between China and the US is risky.
China's tolerance was sometimes taken advantage of by neighboring countries to seize unoccupied islands and grab natural resources under China's sovereignty.
China's long-term strategic plan should never be taken as a weak stand. It is clear that military clashes would bring bad results to all countries in the region involved, but China will never waive its right to protect its core interest with military means.
To maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea, the solution of "shelving disagreement and joint development" is the only option.
