Archive for ‘freedom of navigation’

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03/06/2019

Where there are threats, there are defenses: Chinese defense minister on South China Sea

SINGAPORE, June 2 (Xinhua) — Chinese State Councilor and Defense Minister Wei Fenghe said here on Sunday that China’s construction on its South China Sea islands and reefs is its legitimate right and is purely defensive in nature.

“The current situation in the South China Sea is improving towards greater stability. It is attributed to the common efforts of the countries in the region,” Wei said. “However, there are always people trying to rake in profits by stirring up troubles in the region.”

He said over 100,000 ships sail through the South China Sea each year, and “none has been threatened.”

However, in recent years, some countries outside the region come to the South China Sea to flex muscles, in the name of freedom of navigation. “The large-scale force projection and offensive operations in the region are the most serious destabilizing and uncertain factors in the South China Sea,” he said.

If there is chaos in the South China Sea, the regional countries are the ones who will bear the brunt, and China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) countries have made progress in negotiating the Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, he added.

Wei noted that China’s construction on its South China Sea islands and reefs is legitimate and defensive in nature. “It is the legitimate right of a sovereign state to carry out construction on its own territory. China built limited defense facilities on the islands and reefs for self-defense,” he said.

“Where there are threats, there are defenses. In the face of heavily armed warships and military aircraft, how can we stay impervious and not build some defense facilities?” he asked.

He also refuted the saying of “militarization” of China’s defensive construction on its South China Sea islands and reefs at the Q&A session. “Anyone who has some military sense would know it’s not militarization,” he said.

Wei is here to attend the 18th Shangri-La Dialogue from Friday to Sunday, and he gave a keynote speech on Sunday morning at a plenary session entitled “China and International Security Cooperation.”

Source: Xinhua

Posted in Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Chaos, Chinese State Councilor, Code of Conduct (COC), defense minister, freedom of navigation, International Security Cooperation, militarization, Shangri-La Dialogue, South China Sea Islands, Uncategorized, Wei Fenghe | Leave a Comment »

25/04/2019

Exclusive: In rare move, French warship passes through Taiwan Strait

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – A French warship passed through the strategic Taiwan Strait this month, U.S. officials told Reuters, a rare voyage by a vessel of a European country that is likely to be welcomed by Washington but increase tension with Beijing.

The passage, which was confirmed by China, is a sign that U.S. allies are increasingly asserting freedom of navigation in international waterways near China. It could open the door for other allies, such as Japan and Australia, to consider similar operations.

The French operation comes amid increasing tensions between the United States and China. Taiwan is one of a growing number of flashpoints in the U.S.-China relationship, which also include a trade war, U.S. sanctions and China’s increasingly muscular military posture in the South China Sea, where the United States also conducts freedom of navigation patrols.

Two officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said a French military vessel carried out the transit in the narrow waterway between China and Taiwan on April 6.

One of the officials identified the warship as the French frigate Vendemiaire and said it was shadowed by the Chinese military. The official was not aware of any previous French military passage through the Taiwan Strait.

The officials said that as a result of the passage, China notified France it was no longer invited to a naval parade to mark the 70 years since the founding of China’s Navy. Warships from India, Australia and several other nations participated.

China said on Thursday it had lodged “stern representations” with France for what it called an “illegal” passage.

“China’s military sent navy ships in accordance with the law and the rules to identify the French ship and warn it to leave,” defence ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang told a regularly scheduled media briefing, while declining to say if the sailing had led to the withdrawal of France’s invitation to the parade of ships this week.

“China’s military will stay alert to firmly safeguard China’s sovereignty and security,” he said.

Colonel Patrik Steiger, the spokesman for France’s military chief of staff, declined to comment on an operational mission.

The U.S. officials did not speculate on the purpose of the passage or whether it was designed to assert freedom of navigation.

MOUNTING TENSIONS

The French strait passage comes against the backdrop of increasingly regular passages by U.S. warships through the strategic waterway. Last month, the United States sent Navy and Coast Guard ships through the Taiwan Strait.

The passages upset China, which claims self-ruled Taiwan as part of its territory. Beijing has been ramping up pressure to assert its sovereignty over the island.

Chen Chung-chi, spokesman for Taiwan’s defence ministry, told Reuters by phone the strait is part of busy international waters and it is “a necessity” for vessels from all countries to transit through it. He said Taiwan’s defence ministry will continue to monitor movement of foreign vessels in the region.

“This is an important development both because of the transit itself but also because it reflects a more geopolitical approach by France towards China and the broader Asia-Pacific,” said Abraham Denmark, a former U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defence for East Asia.

The transit is a sign that countries like France are not only looking at China through the lens of trade but from a military standpoint as well, Denmark said.

Last month, France and China signed deals worth billions of euros during a visit to Paris by Chinese President Xi Jinping. French President Emmanuel Macron wants to forge a united European front to confront Chinese advances in trade and technology.

Source: Reuters

Posted in Abraham Denmark, Australia, Beijing, Chen Chung-chi, China alert, Chinese advances in trade and technology, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Coast guard, Colonel Patrik Steiger, defence ministry spokesman, European country, founding of China’s Navy, France, freedom of navigation, French frigate, French President Emmanuel Macron, French warship, geopolitical approach, India alert, international waterways, military chief of staff, navy, participated, Ren Guoqiang, Reuters, ships, Taiwan Strait, Taiwan’s defence ministry, tensions, U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defence for East Asia, Uncategorized, united European front, United States, Vendemiaire, warships, Washington | Leave a Comment »

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