One country’s patrol is another’s provocation. Chinese state-run media has reacted with outrage to a U.S. Navy destroyer sailing within the 12 nautical mile claim Beijing asserts over five Chinese made, artificial islands. On Monday, the U.S.S. Lassen, sailed off the coast of Subi Reef, where the Chinese People’s Liberation Army has built an island and maintains a military base, and to which the Philippines and Vietnam also claim sovereignty. China’s island building has caused serious tension with the nations that also claim territory in the South China Sea.
Republican Rep. J. Randy Forbes led a bipartisan group of 29 members of Congress in urging the Obama administration to conduct such a freedom of navigation operation in the South China Sea. Last week, Forbes told The Cipher Brief, “by restricting the U.S. Navy and Air Force from going within this limit, the United States is implicitly accepting China’s claims that these features are their sovereign territory that entitle them to the surrounding seas as their territorial waters and exclusive economic zone.”
The Global Times, a Chinese state-run media outlet, called the United States an “irrelevant party in the dispute,” and minimized U.S. action to “fanfare” under the guise of protections of international freedom. The U.S. Naval maneuver was launched with the intent to send a message to Beijing: Washington does not accept China’s territorial claims over its man made islands. The U.S. seeks to promote freedom of navigation, with billions of dollars of commerce flowing through the South China Sea every year. Of equal importance are the nations in the region who rely on United States military presence to maintain the balance of power there. China’s military overwhelmingly outnumbers those of other countries with competing claims. China’s concern now is that this U.S. military operation may embolden other claimants to take similar action.
As The Cipher Brief reported last week, military conflict in the South China Sea remains unlikely, despite China’s call for counteraction. Of greater concern for all parties involved is the potential for misinterpretation of intentions.
Alexandra Viers is an International Producer with The Cipher Brief.
