July 16 (Bloomberg) -- U.S. criticism of China’s military buildup may overshadow Asia’s biggest security forum next week after the sinking of a South Korean warship showed the potential for conflict in waters vital to world trade.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi are set to attend the Asean Regional Forum in Hanoi on July 23, where they will meet with diplomats from 24 countries and the European Union. The Asia-Pacific gathering comes as the U.S. questions China’s motives for beefing up its armed forces, with President Barack Obama’s top military adviser saying last month he’s “genuinely concerned.”
“There’s certainly been a lot of concern about China’s growing capabilities,” said Roger Cliff, an analyst at the Rand Corporation, a non-profit policy research group based in Arlington, Virginia. “By 2015, things could get quite dicey for the U.S.”
Growing potential for conflict in waters off China’s 18,000-kilometer (11,184-mile) coastline came into focus in March, when the torpedoing of a South Korean warship killed 46 sailors. After an independent inquiry blamed North Korea for the attack, the U.S. and South Korea vowed to conduct joint military exercises in the Yellow Sea.
“The drill is a threat to China’s security and risks escalating tensions in the Korean Peninsula,” the state-run China Daily wrote in a July 13 editorial. “The U.S. move will be a new roadblock to the resumption of normal military ties between Beijing and Washington.”
Suspension of Ties
China, which cut off high-level military exchanges with the U.S. in January over arms sales to Taiwan, has declined to blame North Korea for the ship sinking. North Korea denies it had a role in the March 26 incident. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said in Singapore last month that China’s suspension of military exchanges “makes little sense” and threatens regional security.
Admiral Mike Mullen, Obama’s top military adviser and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke last month about the “gap” between China’s stated intent and the reality of its military programs.
“Indeed, I have moved from being curious to being genuinely concerned,” he said.
China claims Taiwan and the entire South China Sea as its own and supports Kim Jong Il’s regime in North Korea, putting it at odds with neighboring countries that depend on the U.S. Navy for security. Estimates of oil and gas reserves in the waters vary, with some Chinese studies suggesting it contains more oil than Iran and more natural gas than Saudi Arabia, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Punish Companies
China also said in January it would punish companies involved in the Taiwan arms deal, including Lockheed Martin Corp., United Technologies Corp. and Boeing Co. The threat, which has yet to materialize, represents an escalation in rhetoric compared with a previous arms sale in 2008, said Bonnie Glaser, an expert on U.S.-China relations at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
“If we are six months from now where we are today, and we still don’t have a Gates visit and we still have suspended military exchanges, then I would say it’s a far more severe reaction,” Glaser said.
The U.S. sent three nuclear-powered submarines each capable of holding 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles to the region earlier this month, the South China Morning Post reported on July 4.
At the same time, America has stepped up engagement with former adversaries in the region. This week, the U.S. co-hosted the first large-scale military exercise in Cambodia involving field training for peacekeeping missions and welcomed the highest-level visit by a Laos government official to Washington in 35 years. It has also sought to rejuvenate long dormant military ties with Vietnam and Indonesia.
Military Buildup
China has beefed up its military over the past decade, enhancing the capability to deter U.S. ships and enforce territorial claims off its shores. Last year, Chinese fishing boats harassed two U.S. naval vessels in the South China Sea, where American forces have patrolled since World War II.
Gates called the sea “an area of growing concern” at a security forum in Singapore last month and warned against intimidation of U.S. companies operating in the area. Exxon Mobil Corp. and BP Plc are among businesses that have halted projects in the sea because of China’s objections, according to U.S. government agencies.
“As China builds up its military power commensurate with its economic and cultural power, it may become a lot less ready to sit back and wait” for territorial disputes to be resolved, said Richard Bitzinger, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
Territorial Dispute
China formally disputed the claims of Vietnam and Malaysia to part of the South China Sea’s Spratly Islands when it submitted a map to the United Nations last year asserting ownership over most of the sea. Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan also claim all or part of the island chain, which may contain oil and gas reserves.
Chinese officials told U.S. counterparts in March they consider the South China Sea a “core interest” on par with Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang, Kyodo News reported on July 3, citing unidentified officials. That would make the issue non- negotiable and allow China to use force to uphold its claims, said Ian Storey, a fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asia Studies in Singapore.
“The balance of military power in the South China Sea is shifting decisively” toward China, he said. “That suggests the status quo is not sustainable.”
--Editors: Patrick Harrington, Bill Austin.
To contact the reporter on this story: Daniel Ten Kate in Bangkok at dtenkate@bloomberg.net
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi are set to attend the Asean Regional Forum in Hanoi on July 23, where they will meet with diplomats from 24 countries and the European Union. The Asia-Pacific gathering comes as the U.S. questions China’s motives for beefing up its armed forces, with President Barack Obama’s top military adviser saying last month he’s “genuinely concerned.”
“There’s certainly been a lot of concern about China’s growing capabilities,” said Roger Cliff, an analyst at the Rand Corporation, a non-profit policy research group based in Arlington, Virginia. “By 2015, things could get quite dicey for the U.S.”
Growing potential for conflict in waters off China’s 18,000-kilometer (11,184-mile) coastline came into focus in March, when the torpedoing of a South Korean warship killed 46 sailors. After an independent inquiry blamed North Korea for the attack, the U.S. and South Korea vowed to conduct joint military exercises in the Yellow Sea.
“The drill is a threat to China’s security and risks escalating tensions in the Korean Peninsula,” the state-run China Daily wrote in a July 13 editorial. “The U.S. move will be a new roadblock to the resumption of normal military ties between Beijing and Washington.”
Suspension of Ties
China, which cut off high-level military exchanges with the U.S. in January over arms sales to Taiwan, has declined to blame North Korea for the ship sinking. North Korea denies it had a role in the March 26 incident. U.S. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said in Singapore last month that China’s suspension of military exchanges “makes little sense” and threatens regional security.
Admiral Mike Mullen, Obama’s top military adviser and chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke last month about the “gap” between China’s stated intent and the reality of its military programs.
“Indeed, I have moved from being curious to being genuinely concerned,” he said.
China claims Taiwan and the entire South China Sea as its own and supports Kim Jong Il’s regime in North Korea, putting it at odds with neighboring countries that depend on the U.S. Navy for security. Estimates of oil and gas reserves in the waters vary, with some Chinese studies suggesting it contains more oil than Iran and more natural gas than Saudi Arabia, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Punish Companies
China also said in January it would punish companies involved in the Taiwan arms deal, including Lockheed Martin Corp., United Technologies Corp. and Boeing Co. The threat, which has yet to materialize, represents an escalation in rhetoric compared with a previous arms sale in 2008, said Bonnie Glaser, an expert on U.S.-China relations at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.
“If we are six months from now where we are today, and we still don’t have a Gates visit and we still have suspended military exchanges, then I would say it’s a far more severe reaction,” Glaser said.
The U.S. sent three nuclear-powered submarines each capable of holding 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles to the region earlier this month, the South China Morning Post reported on July 4.
At the same time, America has stepped up engagement with former adversaries in the region. This week, the U.S. co-hosted the first large-scale military exercise in Cambodia involving field training for peacekeeping missions and welcomed the highest-level visit by a Laos government official to Washington in 35 years. It has also sought to rejuvenate long dormant military ties with Vietnam and Indonesia.
Military Buildup
China has beefed up its military over the past decade, enhancing the capability to deter U.S. ships and enforce territorial claims off its shores. Last year, Chinese fishing boats harassed two U.S. naval vessels in the South China Sea, where American forces have patrolled since World War II.
Gates called the sea “an area of growing concern” at a security forum in Singapore last month and warned against intimidation of U.S. companies operating in the area. Exxon Mobil Corp. and BP Plc are among businesses that have halted projects in the sea because of China’s objections, according to U.S. government agencies.
“As China builds up its military power commensurate with its economic and cultural power, it may become a lot less ready to sit back and wait” for territorial disputes to be resolved, said Richard Bitzinger, a senior fellow at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
Territorial Dispute
China formally disputed the claims of Vietnam and Malaysia to part of the South China Sea’s Spratly Islands when it submitted a map to the United Nations last year asserting ownership over most of the sea. Brunei, the Philippines and Taiwan also claim all or part of the island chain, which may contain oil and gas reserves.
Chinese officials told U.S. counterparts in March they consider the South China Sea a “core interest” on par with Taiwan, Tibet and Xinjiang, Kyodo News reported on July 3, citing unidentified officials. That would make the issue non- negotiable and allow China to use force to uphold its claims, said Ian Storey, a fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asia Studies in Singapore.
“The balance of military power in the South China Sea is shifting decisively” toward China, he said. “That suggests the status quo is not sustainable.”
--Editors: Patrick Harrington, Bill Austin.
To contact the reporter on this story: Daniel Ten Kate in Bangkok at dtenkate@bloomberg.net
2 comments:
DO MA AH CHINA!
That's not fair, USA is more farer from Asia than China..
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