This is Chinese manifest destiny.
What China Has Been Building in the South China Sea
171–178 of 178 posts
Re: What China Has Been Building in the South China Sea
#172Earlier quoted context omitted.
Controlling is not really a matter of point of view. It's a matter of patrolling, and sending boats away if they are not allowed in the area, etc. Japan inherited this control from the US, and China is perfectly allowed to dispute ownership of the islands. But claiming that Japan is not -at present- controlling the islands is simply not correct. The Liancourt Rocks case is interesting, because it is so asymmetric: al…
Japan"bought" the islands from private owners (funny right?). I do not feel that there will ever be any real friendship between these two countries. I would compare it to polish russian relationship. Koreans have every right to feel strong about it. Every damn right. But this is a discussion for another evening. And replying to your comments above i was talking about the situation in asia in general. You should also…
The state of France in my hometown recently sold a former military estate to a private company to build a hotel: I don't see what's funny about it, or what it has to do with sovereignty. I don't know where you are from, but I am sure the state sometimes buy or sell lands/assets there too.
The state of Japan bought the islands to prevent promoters from exploiting them, to try to maintain the status quo with China. Obviously it was a failure, and outright buying the islands was not a good solution. But the liberal Japanese government at that time was very inexperienced: I don't think Abe for example -despite being a nationalist- would have done the same mistake.
I am from Europe, and I do not share your pessimism about Asia. The city where I'm born switched between France and Germany at least four times over the last 150 years. Hell, there is not a single border on the continent that makes sense. Peace and "friendship" between states is a political construct, built strictly out of political will, the rest is nationalist bullshit. That's true of Poland and Russia too.
Re: What China Has Been Building in the South China Sea
#173Earlier quoted context omitted.
My word the southern reaches of the Chinese claim are extremely grabby! Is this just similar to haggling in a bazaar for an item listed at $30, which you personally value at $20 so you open with a lowballed offer of $10?
You're being generous. China is annexing territory that belongs to Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, and the Philippines. The same thing that Russia is doing in Ukraine. It's an act of war, the issue is that the world is very afraid of China (both militarily and economically).
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Re: What China Has Been Building in the South China Sea
#174Earlier quoted context omitted.
What if China ran their war ships into Mexico gulf just like U.S did in Southern China Sea?We shall think it is quiet fair because in the "public" ocean?
http://thediplomat.com/2014/07/china-is-spying-on-rimpac/ "“It has not entered the territorial seas of the U.S. and it is in accordance with international law regarding freedom of navigation,” Capt. James said in a statement released to the Wall Street Journal. He explained that the ship was in Hawaii’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ). The U.S. maintains that freedom of navigation for all international ships extend to…
> Thanks for playing.
Please don't.
Re: What China Has Been Building in the South China Sea
#175Earlier quoted context omitted.
The shipping routes are in international straights. China would not disrupt them because Chinese ships would be at risk in other waterways they can not project power to.
If you look at the map, China is attempting to claim ownership of said straights. Your second point is accurate, but China having the ability to disrupt a route brings it up to par with other powers, whereas right now they are solely at the mercy of foreign nations wrt other waterways, with no ability to respond in kind. This gives them that ability.
That is illegal under the Innocent Passage clause of the UN Law of the Seas.
Re: What China Has Been Building in the South China Sea
#176Earlier quoted context omitted.
High-speed drones will still need landing strips. It will probably be optimal to have smaller, more numerous drone carriers, but not by much.
Possibly not if they're solar or hybrid powered, fuel efficient, and have large enough fuel stores. A plane recently flew around the entirety of the earth without stopping so it's certainly conceivable to fly half way around the planet and back again.
That would have limited military use. Long-term airborne drones are slow, light, and carry a small payload.
Re: What China Has Been Building in the South China Sea
#177It all comes down to the international laws of the sea. Planting your flag on a 1m wide rock above the high tide line enables an exclusive zone with radius 12 NM for excluding all foreign vessels, a radius of 24 NM for enforcement of your laws, and one with radius 200 NM for exclusive economic activities, like oil drilling, undersea mining, and fishing. It's a resource grab. China wants the fish and the seafloor. Wha…
Artificially-constructed islands don't count for expanding EEZ per UNCLOS. What China appears to be doing is attempting a mixture of trying to dilute the facts so as to increase ambiguity and developing "facts on the ground" (cf. the Israeli settlement patterns in Palestinian territory) so that any grand compromise hews more to their favor. I think the last thing China wants is a multilateral treaty: the more people…
Some of them are natural islands that have been artificially expanded to support a military presence.
The 12 NM territorial limit for a natural island certainly allows the power owning it to build barracks, airfields, and artillery batteries within that limit. And that prevents other countries from claiming or disputing the island.