Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

China’s actions in S China Sea stem from a fear of being encircled

It is difficult to fathom how a faraway power, with a frayed record of ensuring peace elsewhere in recent times, could champion the cause of freedom in this region (“Beijing slams Pentagon for ‘deliberately distorting’ China’s defence policies”; May 16).

It is difficult to fathom how a faraway power, with a frayed record of ensuring peace elsewhere in recent times, could champion the cause of freedom in this region (“Beijing slams Pentagon for ‘deliberately distorting’ China’s defence policies”; May 16).

Let us take the perspective of a growing nation like China, which depends on resource imports from around the world for its economic development. It, too, has a vital interest in ensuring freedom of navigation in the high seas.

Its actions stem from a fear of encirclement — from the Indian Ocean, down the Straits of Malacca and the eastern seaboard of the Pacific Ocean to Oceania — that it perceives may curtail its lifeline of imports vital to its long-term prosperity.

It is natural for any nation to guard its own interests. But the precarious balance of power has been exacerbated by the lack of understanding on all sides, owing to either the military posturing or the lack of dialogue.

It does not help that foreign media take a slanted view in reporting what seems palatable to audiences back home. Drawing world attention to the issue with hidden agendas, perhaps, does not augur well.

Of what interest is it to anyone living in continents far away if tension escalates into conflict in the South China Sea? It would show again that gunboat diplomacy fails miserably.

While Singapore is not a claimant state here, we must also look after our interests as a sovereign state. We should remain impartial in the flux of international relations.

The dispute should be left to the attendant countries, either through bilateral or multilateral discussions.

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.