China’s Push To Take Over The South China Sea I usually do not write about world affairs, but there is so much going on lately I thought I might talk about the more interesting stuff, such as China’s push to take over the South China Sea. The South China sea is becoming a real problem not only for Japan, the Philippines, Brunei, Taiwan, Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam. The reason for this is the People’s Republic of China which wants domination of the sea. They want to control it so much they have built artificial islands in it with air and naval bases on them. They have been called permanent aircraft carriers. The area encompasses a very rich fishing ground and to prove their dominance China wants other nations to ask permission before entering at least some areas of the sea. The United States has been sailing carrier fleets just outside the 12 mile limit to show China it doesn’t respect their dominance. Recently the British sent their carrier group there but when China warned them not to come that close, they turned tail. Many in the U.S. feel disappointed at the actions of such a close ally. To me one of the most bizarre things of late is the fact Vietnam has become a close ally of ours. I guess we can thank China for that. They have been pushing against Vietnam for years now and the business with the South China sea has brought them closer to us. Here is something which is puzzling, we fought a war there to prevent communism, yet Vietnam a communist state has fostered close ties with us since then, but they are still communist. One of the big worries for China is Japan, their mortal enemy. While China is brisling with nuclear weapons, Japan has none and is being protected by us. They are however building up their military forces and as we know, all the countries who do have nuclear weapons are reluctant to use them, thank goodness for that. My point is, China even though nuclear armed, might not use them against Japan in a war with that country because of fear we might retaliate. China has been objecting to some of Japan’s new weapons, such as ships which can carry aircraft. Japan counters by saying they only carry helicopters, but one has to wonder if vertical takeoff planes could be substituted. One thing which has really annoyed Japan is the fact the Chinese Coast Guard are now patrolling the Senkaku Islands, islands claimed by Japan. Recently Japan has purchased F-35 planes and missiles from us to increase their strike capacity. China has fought Vietnam before. In 1979 it fought Vietnam for three weeks in a very bloody war. When the war was over, experts said the Chinese underperformed. The Vietnamese claimed victory, but so did the Chinese. The unusual fact is two communist countries were fighting each other and China is huge compared to Vietnam and has far more resources, but we all know what great fighters the Vietnamese are. China has been very busy causing havoc all over the area of the South China Sea and establishing ports of call all through South America. China wants to push the United States out of influence in South America and indeed we have already lost much influence there even without China. There are 9 countries in Latin America which do not recognize the government in Beijing. There are also 6 others in the rest of the world. China is looking to change the balance of power in those countries and not only get relations with them, but become the principal destination for the goods from those countries and also to put bases in those countries. The Philippines has been having trouble with China lately because China is claiming the West Philippine Sea as their own. The Philippines accused China of making illegitimate claims about the South China Sea. China has sent over 200 ships to an area claimed by the Philippines known as the Whitsun Reef area. When the government of the Philippines complained, China refused to order the ships to leave and added the area belonged to China. According to the Chinese just about all of the South China Sea is theirs and they show no regard for the claims of others. In 2016 the Philippines won an arbitration victory which declared the Chinese claims to the South China Sea were invalid. The problem of China wanting all of the South China Sea has strained the relations between China and Malaysia. Traditionally, the two countries have had close ties and for the most part still do, but the looming problems with the Chinese claims on the South China Sea are starting to affect these close ties. China’s ambitions are even hurting their allies. Indonesia is saying they want none of the China claim nonsense as concerns the South China Sea. China has not only sent fishing fleets into Indonesian waters, but they are protected by the Chinese Coast Guard. To respond to this the Indonesian Navy was sent to the Natuna Islands which is near the line where China is claiming the contested waters. China replied by claiming its maritime rights and interests in the South China Sea are guaranteed under the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea. This was quickly rejected by Indonesia. Indonesia has even sent planes and ships to the islands. A base was set up on the islands to track and intercept any ships deemed to be violating their territory. If we are talking about China’s actions against Taiwan, it is more than just taking over the South China Sea, it is also about incorporating Taiwan into the Peoples Republic of China. This has been the main thrust for many years since some of the Chinese fled there from the communists. They actually invaded one of the islands just off the coast, but were beaten back and suffered large casualties and deaths. China believes the United States will go to war with them if they invade Taiwan and that is the only thing saving that country, since it is outgunned and outmanned. It is also more advanced in many ways that China proper and would be a real feather in their cap, especially in computer chip manufacture. Brunei is also having problems with China. It is a tiny country but has finally referenced the problems pertaining to the South China sea and China. It was done very delicately. Brunei has not asserted sovereignty over the Louisa Reef, Owen Shoal and Rifleman Bank but claims it is part of its Exclusive Economic Zone known as the EEZ. Brunei lives on oil reserves which eventually will run out so they will have to figure out how to support themselves. Many say the reason why Brunei is not speaking out louder is the fact China has invested 6 billion dollars in oil refineries in that country and promised infrastructure updates and to boost trade and agricultural cooperation.
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