‘China using talk, creep strategy’

A pronouncement made by Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan that he wants to enhance a dialogue to manage disputes with its neighbors is just part of an ongoing “talk and creep” strategy being employed by Beijing to boost its own maritime claim to almost the entire South China Sea, a military security official said.

The official, who asked not to be identified, said China’s dialogue and peace-posturing is aimed at easing mounting strains in its international relations as a result of its “aggressive bullying of smaller countries with territorial stakes in the disputed South China Sea region, especially the Philippines and Vietnam,” more particularly in the hotly contested Spratlys archipelago.

“We are listening, but we will only believe that China really wants to manage the disputes through dialogues if they stop their reclamation activities and removed newly put up structures in the region,” the official said.

At the same time, China is building an island on a reef in the disputed Spratly Islands large enough to accommodate what could be its first offshore airstrip in the South China Sea, a leading defense publication said on Friday.

The construction has stoked concern that China may be converting disputed territory in the mineral-rich archipelago into military installations, adding to tension in waters also claimed by Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines, Vietnam and Brunei.

Another source said the international community is closely watching China’s behavior not only in the South China Sea but also in the East China Sea and Beijing.

“Fully aware of this, China is now shifting strategy to repair the damage to its foreign relations as a result of its bullying tactics over these two disputed regions,” he said.

Beijing has dispatched ships and planes to assert each claim to almost 90 percent of the entire South China Sea, spawning further the prevailing tension in the disputed Spartlys archipelago.

A top Chinese official declared in a security forum held in Beijing that China is considering opening defense hotlines with its Southeast Asian neighbors, four of them, including Vietnam and the Philippines, involved in maritime disputes in the South China Sea.

“We know this is just part of their ‘Talk and Creep’ strategy apparently in the hope that we will withdraw our case filed against them before the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea which they cannot refute,” the security official said.

Security and territorial monitoring being conducted by the Western Command (Wescom) over the country’s West Philippine Sea area, showed the ongoing infrastructure development being conducted by China.

On the other hand, a high-ranking military official said China’s move is a welcome development and that peaceful settlement of disputes is the best way to move forward towards development.

“We support China’s peaceful rise, and we can make this country a reliable partner in economic prosperity for the entire region,” he said. – Reuters, Jaime Laude © Provided by Philippine Star