Beijing has shown great restraint in South China Sea, says Chinese envoy

BEIJING — China has shown “great restraint” in the South China Sea by not seizing islands occupied by other countries even though it could have, a senior Chinese diplomat said yesterday ahead of two regional summits where the disputed waterway is likely to be a hot topic.

Chinese Vice-Foreign Minister Liu Zhenmin told a news conference in Beijing that China was the real victim as it had had “dozens” of its islands and reefs in the Spratlys illegally occupied by three of the claimants.

He did not name the countries, but all claimants (Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Taiwan) except Brunei have military fortifications in the Spratlys.

“The Chinese government has the right and the ability to recover the islands and reefs illegally occupied by neighbouring countries,” Mr Liu said.

“But we haven’t done this. We have maintained great restraint with the aim to preserve peace and stability in the South China Sea.”

Beijing has overlapping claims with several neighbouring countries in the South China Sea, through which US$5 trillion (S$7.1 trillion) in ship-borne trade passes every year.

Reclamation work and the building of three airfields and other facilities on some of China’s artificial islands in the Spratly archipelago have alarmed the region and raised concern in Washington that China is extending its military reach deep into maritime South-east Asia.

In a signal that Washington does not recognise Chinese sovereignty over the newly created islands, the Pentagon has launched a series of patrols to demonstrate freedom of navigation in international waters, drawing the ire of Beijing.

Tensions over the South China Sea are likely to dominate the 27th Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit and Related Summits held in Kuala Lumpur this weekend. While not on the formal agenda of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) leaders’ meeting today and tomorrow, the South China Sea is expected to be discussed on the sidelines.

US-PHILIPPINES DEFENCE COOPERATION

United States President Barack Obama, who arrived in Manila yesterday, will attend both meetings. Chinese President Xi Jinping is in Manila for APEC, while Premier Li Keqiang will represent China in Malaysia.

Mr Obama’s first major stop in the Philippines yesterday was a tour of the BRP Gregorio del Pilar, an advanced Philippine Navy frigate once owned by the US.

“The United States has been committed to the security of this region for more than 70 years, we have a treaty obligation, an ironclad commitment, to the defence of our ally the Philippines, who can count on the United States,” said Mr Obama during the tour.

The White House announced via a statement yesterday that the US will provide the Philippines with a third warship, part of a US$250 million package of maritime security assistance to South-east Asian allies.

Washington has been helping to enhance the military capabilities of Manila, among various measures undertaken to counter China’s territorial ambitions in the disputed waters.

China has been particularly angered by Manila’s case against Beijing at an international arbitration tribunal over rival claims in the South China Sea. Beijing has refused to participate in the arbitration proceedings, saying that the tribunal has no jurisdiction over the issue.

Speaking in Shanghai on the occasion of a visit of an American warship, Admiral Scott Swift, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, said he thought the Philippines was going the right way in trying to resolve the problem.

“Certainly it’s not force and coercion,” he said.

Despite the disagreements, Mr Swift said it was important Sino-US military-to-military relations were continuing.

“We have much more in common than in competition,” he said.

Mr Liu said China did not want the South China Sea to be the focus of the East Asia Summit — where ASEAN will meet with key dialogue partners including the US, China, Japan and Australia. However, he noted it would be hard to avoid the issue and that some countries would raise it.

LONG AIRSTRIPS BENEFICIAL

China’s island building in the Spratlys was not about militarisation, Mr Liu said, adding for example that too much attention had been placed on the length of China’s airstrips.

Satellite photographs show construction is finished on a 3,000m-long airstrip on Fiery Cross Reef. Security experts say such an airfield would be able to accommodate most Chinese military aircraft.

“Actually, the larger they are, the more civilian benefits they will bring,” Mr Liu said, pointing to the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370 last year as evidence of the poor state of search and rescue capabilities in the South China Sea. Rescuers initially focused their search on the waterway before moving to the Indian Ocean.

Mr Liu also repeated Beijing’s standard line that while China’s building work was for defence, its main focus was civilian.

China was building facilities such as lighthouses, while protecting the environment, he added.

He said the focus of the East Asia Summit should be development.

“Hyping the South China Sea issue is not conducive to cooperation,” said Mr Liu. AGENCIES