South China Sea Tensions a Backdrop to Kerry’s China Visit

By KEITH BRADSHER

North Korea and bilateral relations between the United States and China are dominating Secretary of State John Kerry’s visit to East Asia this week, but tensions continue to simmer in the South China Sea as well.

Hua Chunying, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, took exception on Friday to a remark a day earlier by Adm. Jonathan Greenert, the chief of naval operations of the United States Navy. Admiral Greenert said the United States would fulfill its obligations under a mutual defense treaty to help the Philippines if it came under attack, although the admiral was careful not to say how much help might be provided.

Ms. Hua responded on Friday afternoon that, “The U.S., who is not a party concerned in the South China Sea dispute, should honor its commitment of not taking sides on the territorial sovereignty issue, be discreet in word and deed and do more for peace and stability of the Asia-Pacific, rather than the opposite.”

China has been increasingly assertive in the last few years in claiming islands, shoals and fishing grounds in the South China Sea, including near the Philippines and south almost to the coast of Borneo. When asked on Thursday during a visit to the Philippines whether the United States would help if China attacked as part of a dispute in the South China Sea, Admiral Greenert replied that, “Of course we would help you, I don’t know what that help would be specifically – we have an obligation because we have a treaty,” Admiral Greenert said.

At a separate press briefing on Friday evening, Secretary of State John Kerry lent support to the Philippines call for South China Sea issues to be resolved according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. “With respect to the South China Sea, it’s important to resolve these differences in a peaceful, non-confrontational way that honors the law of the sea and honors the rule of law itself,” he said, according to a State Department transcript.

Beijing officials have rejected using the United Nations Convention, although China is a signatory, and have said that they prefer bilateral talks instead with each country, as such negotiations give them considerable leverage over each of their much smaller neighbors.China is already unhappy after President Benigno S. Aquino III of the Philippines last week cited Nazi Germany’s demands for Czech territory in 1938 in calling for international support for his country in resisting China’s territorial claims off the west coast of his country. Hong Lei, another Chinese foreign ministry spokesman, responded at a briefing on Feb. 7 by pointing out that China had fought against the Axis during World War II.

“It is inconceivable and unreasonable to place China-Philippines South China Sea disputes in the same category with the WWII history,” he said. “The Chinese side is shocked at and dissatisfied with the remarks from the Philippine side.”

On Feb. 8, Mr. Hong also denounced Daniel R. Russel, the assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs, for questioning China’s recent assertions of maritime sovereignty not just to the waters near Philippines but almost to the shores of Malaysian Borneo.

“China’s rights and interests in the South China Sea are formed in history and protected by international law,” Mr. Hong said. “China stays committed to resolving maritime disputes with countries directly concerned through negotiation and consultation.”

During the interview last week, President Aquino said that no one should worry that expressions of support by the United States would embolden the Philippines to take an overly confrontational stance toward China, because the Philippines is well aware that its military is far weaker than China’s.

A survey conducted in December and released in stages in the Philippines over the last two weeks indicated that Mr. Aquino may have been tapping into deep worries there about China’s territorial ambitions. Filipinos expressed greater satisfaction with his administration’s defending of the country’s territorial rights and foreign policy than with any other national policy.

In his interview on Feb. 7 with The New York Times, Mr. Aquino strongly asserted that he would not back down from his country’s longstanding claims to islands and atolls off its shores, even though he readily acknowledged that the Philippines has scant military force to resist China’s increasingly vocal expression of territorial ambitions and steady military buildup.

“One is perplexed at what China’s intentions are — I don’t think that there is any expert that can come up with conclusions that are beyond refute,” he said.

IHS Jane’s, a defense industry consulting and analysis company,estimated earlier this month that by next year, China will be spending more on its military than Germany, France and Britain combined.

But while public opinion tends to be heavily pro-American in the Philippines, particularly after the United States provided extensive relief after Typhoon Haiyan while China did almost nothing, many in the Philippines intellectual elite remain dubious of the United States and of President Aquino’s hopes for an expanded rotation of American troops through the Philippines. They see the current tensions with China not as resembling the West’s resistance to Nazi aggression or containment of the former Soviet Union, but rather in terms of the United States’ more recent inability to bring stability in countries facing challenges radical Islamist groups.

“Becoming a frontline state is something we must avoid at all costs – Pakistan, Afghanistan, that is not something we want to become,” said Congressman Walden Bello, a member of Mr. Aquino’s ruling coalition.

The White House separately announced on Wednesday that President Obama would visit Japan, South Korea, Malaysia and the Philippines in April. In the Philippines, the statement said, “He will meet with President Aquino to highlight our economic and security cooperation, including through the modernization of our defense alliance, efforts to expand economic ties and spark economic growth through the Partnership for Growth, and through our deep and enduring people-to-people ties.”

Secretary of State John Kerry is making stops in South Korea, China and Indonesia during his current trip, but is not planning a stop in Manila. When he visited Asia in mid-December, he included stops in Manila and Tacloban, the city devastated last November by Typhoon Haiyan, and declared American support then for the Philippines, including $40 million in maritime security assistance.