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A U.S. naval ship carried out Monday the primary recognized freedom of navigation operation (FONOP) close to the disputed Second Thomas Shoal within the South China Sea, a transfer condemned by China as “unlawful.”
“On December 4, the usGiffords littoral fight ship trespassed into the waters adjoining to Ren’ai Reef in China’s Nansha Islands with out the approval of the Chinese language authorities,” Col. Tian Junli, spokesman for the Chinese language army’s Southern Theater Command, mentioned in an announcement.
Ren’ai is the Chinese language identify for the Second Thomas Shoal, an atoll within the Spratly (Nansha) archipelago. Filipinos name it Ayungin Shoal and the Philippine army in 1999 intentionally ran aground an outdated touchdown ship, BRP Sierra Madre, to function an outpost.
Manila, which maintains that the reef is positioned inside its unique financial zone, has been accusing Beijing of “acting aggressively” and blocking its ships from delivering provides to troops stationed there.
In his newest assertion, Col. Tian claimed that the U.S. had “significantly violated China’s sovereignty and safety, severely undermined regional peace and stability, and significantly violated worldwide regulation…”
“This totally demonstrates that the USA is the most important risk to peace and stability within the South China Sea,” he mentioned.
The U.S. responded that the usGabrielle Giffords was conducting routine operations in worldwide waters within the South China Sea, in keeping with worldwide regulation, Reuters information company reported, quoting an announcement from the U.S. Navy.
“On daily basis the U.S. seventh Fleet operates within the South China Sea, as they’ve for many years. These operations show we’re dedicated to upholding a free and open Indo-Pacific area,” the assertion mentioned.
Monday’s mission was “the primary express point out of the Second Thomas Shoal as a FONOP goal” for the U.S. army, in response to regional maritime analyst Collin Koh, who predicted that there would probably be extra such operations sooner or later.
“The query is whether or not it’ll be carried out on the similar time, or dovetailing with Philippine resupply missions to the outpost, or just simply carried out in random or as a response to extra extreme circumstances,” mentioned Koh, a analysis fellow on the S. Rajaratnam Faculty of Worldwide Research (RSIS) in Singapore.
Escalation of pressure
“Ren’ai Reef is among the most tense areas within the South China Sea,” wrote Hu Xijin, former editor of the pro-Beijing International Instances, within the paper.
“Chinese language coast guard ships have had a number of confrontations with Philippine vessels close to Ren’ai Reef this yr, and a collision occurred in October,” Hu wrote, including that the U.S. ship’s look this time “is an escalation of the U.S. gesture of intervening within the South China Sea.”
The Chinese language commentator accused the U.S. army of utilizing “low cost muscle-flexing and petty actions to incite the Philippines to confront China extra boldly.”
“The Second Thomas Shoal is considerably particular as a result of the Sierra Madre continues to be a commissioned Philippine Navy ship which implies any assault on it can quantity to an armed assault that triggers the Mutual Protection Treaty between the U.S. and the Philippines,” mentioned Koh.
In accordance with the treaty, or MDT in brief, Washington and Manila are obliged to assist one another militarily if both of them had been to be attacked by an exterior celebration.
“I’ll surmise the Chinese language could be extra cautious across the shoal, even when the Individuals stage FONOPs within the space,” Koh instructed Radio Free Asia.
“I additionally consider Beijing could understand this to be not merely concerning the Individuals displaying ethical assist to their Filipino allies however to probably pave [the] means for the latter to hold out so-called ‘giant scale building’ on the characteristic,” the analyst mentioned.
“Due to this fact, we don’t dismiss the potential of Beijing ramping up its measures within the space,” he added.
Japanese information outlet Nikkei Asia in November reported that the U.S. had begun advising the Philippines on the restore of the World Battle II-era ship BRP Sierra Madre.
Final week the Philippine authorities gave approval for a big convoy of civilian boats to carry Christmas cheer to troops stationed there, risking an offended response from China.
Maritime militia at Whitsun Reef
In the meantime the Philippine Coast Guard mentioned Sunday that two of its vessels had been dispatched “to conduct patrols within the rapid neighborhood of Julian Felipe Reef”– additionally referred to as Whitsun – one other disputed reef within the Spratlys.
Since mid-November, the coast guard has monitored greater than 100 Chinese language maritime militia boats “swarming the realm,” mentioned spokesman Jay Tariela.
Tariela added that the variety of Chinese language vessels “is now estimated to have grown to greater than 135 vessels dispersed and scattered” inside the reef. Many of the ships are rafted collectively and never “seen” on the AIS ship monitoring system.
Philippine officers repeatedly mentioned that their nation has sovereignty over the reef “in accordance with worldwide legal guidelines together with the United Nations Conference on the Legislation of the Sea, the 2016 Arbitral Award and Philippine home legal guidelines.”
China claims practically the entire South China Sea as its personal regardless of a world arbitration court docket in 2016 ruling in favor of the Philippines in a case introduced towards Beijing over the contested waterway.
Manila has lodged quite a few diplomatic protests with Beijing over the swarming of Whitsun Reef by Chinese language maritime militia ships, which China insists are fishing vessels which were fishing within the waters close to the reef it calls Niu’e Jiao all alongside.
Edited by Mike Firn and Taejun Kang.
BenarNews is an RFA-affiliated on-line information group.
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