politics

U.S. criticizes Chinese maritime claims

13 Comments
By MATTHEW PENNINGTON

The requested article has expired, and is no longer available. Any related articles, and user comments are shown below.

© Copyright 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

©2024 GPlusMedia Inc.

13 Comments
Login to comment

Finally someone is responding to the Japanese lobbying. But it's just a small number. Getting the Americans to come down on the Chinese is not necessarily a good thing for Japan in the long run, not to mention the Americans probably won't do that.

-10 ( +1 / -11 )

rsgz4gg7y2Feb. 06, 2014 - 07:43AM JST Finally someone is responding to the Japanese lobbying.

I am going to assume you didn't read news 10 years ago because the Chinese threat to Asia and US interests have been around in the U.S. since 2002/2003. You really think any country needs "Japan's lobbying" to recognize the threat China is posing?

12 ( +13 / -1 )

"There is a growing concern that this pattern of behavior in the South China Sea reflects an incremental effort by China to assert control over the area contained in the so-called 'nine-dash line,' despite the objections of its neighbors," ...

President Benigno S. Aquino III was less subtle likening China to Germany under Hitler.

"If we say yes to something we believe is wrong now, what guarantee is there that the wrong will not be further exacerbated down the line?" he said. "At what point do you say, 'Enough is enough'? Well, the world has to say it - remember that the Sudetenland was given in an attempt to appease Hitler to prevent World War II."

The lesson from WWII is that appeasement doesn't work.

"There are some who, for varying reasons, would appease Red China. They are blind to history's clear lesson, for history teaches with unmistakable emphasis that appeasement but begets new and bloodier war. It points to no single instance where this end has justified that means, where appeasement has led to more than a sham peace." - General Douglas MacArthur

8 ( +8 / -0 )

China has been reluctant to discuss territorial disputes with the bloc, although there has been tentative progress in the past year.

So the Chinese are not just ignorant and belligerent with japan it seems , but the whole of asia.

9 ( +10 / -1 )

@rsgz4gg7y2 -

The US criticism over China's behaviour in the South China Sea has nothing to do with a 'Japanese lobby' and everything to do with CCP's refusal to participate in UN arbitration processes to settle disputes arising from their territorial/resource grabs in the region - most recently with the Philippines.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/06/china-territorial-dispute-philippines

6 ( +7 / -2 )

We need to half there growth, then let them know we will Holt it if they don't stop. This will send a clear message and china knows they need growth.

Its as easy as that.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

More than half the world's merchant goods are shipped through the South China Sea and in 2010, then US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton declared that freedom of navigation there was a US national interest. < http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-26062033>

China wants a stranglehold on free movement.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

Well,,, the US's non action in the South China sea was all China needed to boost its aggression in the East China sea. Did anyone NOT see that coming? You can not appease a country and leaders such as China. How many times has China called off military engagement with the US? They done it again and again, as if they do not need engagement with the US and could care less. Each time the US has been the one to start up the engagement process. To me it has always seemed for us as crawling begging for China to resume military engagement and as we seen, China could care less and why at any moment they would stop the process.. This has continually followed this cycle of appeasing China, which in return emboldened China to where we have this continual belligerent authoritarian state causing havoc towards everyone in the region and everyone that may be in the region as US ships. And as Scott said above... focus on China's growth that is the basis of China's export industry and the key to their growth. And yes it is that simple because we did with out the isolated state of China for many many years and we all did well! Matter of fact, these engagement policies based on greed by corporations and politicians, with CHina had been the never ending spiral downwards of all western nations that saw all their manufacturing base moving out and into China. European union was the start and everyone seen the results, as they had like a 21 percent unemployment rate, but no... that was not good enough because the high tech jobs would make up the difference, although that logic saw the 20 some percent unemployment rate, then we heard here in the US the same exact words by our politicians and economists... so our politicians passed policies so that the US could follow suite as Europe and guess what????

We could do with out China again !!!!! For us here in the US that would be over 300 billion dollars a year back towards the black in our trade deficit alone with just this one country China, which at this time our trade deficit runs over 700 billion dollars, with over 300 billion being with China!! What other countries are running such a trade deficit with China????? Many I am sure, but maybe not at such a great margin.

Stop this appeasing of CHINA!

5 ( +5 / -0 )

Let me try to put some possible outcomes in the context of South China Sea

First and foremost, To the US, South China Sea is crucial to American best national interest. Simply put, if the US would lose control on that body of water, its day to be driven out of the Asia by China would be not too far away. Can the US relinquish its influences without furious fight ? you will be the judge.

Secondly, to China, South China Sea is equally crucial with the same reason listed above. There is one more; Chinese regime will have to do almost everything in its power to control South China Sea because the water is its essential passage for trades with the world including its fossil fuels and raw materials imports. Now, Can Chinese regime ignore its strategic weakness without fighting to its teeth? This is a no-brainer one.

Thirdly, Can Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan stop China’s ambition? The answer is a big question mark. Even those countries stand together with Japan’s help, the chance for them to fight with China and win a full-fledged war would be remote at the best in five years.

So how would South China Sea shape out in future? A more likelihood is that China will carve out a series of deals with individual country (Taiwan may be is the first one to sign on) regarding disputed territories around the body of the water in exchanging its full control on its main passage through South China Sea. The US will gradually retreat (not full withdraw) from South China Sea after its own type of deal-making with China.

For Japan, it will have to absorb the impacts, mostly negative, when dust settles in South China Sea 10 year so from now.

Here is the sad reality, genie is out of the bottle, Unfortunately with help from the US and Japan in the past. China is entering its own version of rule-define era ( it happened when the US came to the age 50 years ago). The best the world can possibly hope for is to delay Chinese rise unless we collectively want to a World War III. Anyone wants to raise your hand to join the army ? :)

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Thanks for letting us in on the the Chinese objective Ethan Wilbur.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Which is all deliciously ironic, given the rhetoric starting the emanate from China about Japan's nationalist and militarist agenda, not to mention the likening of them to Nazis. Smoke and mirrors.

If you take a look at the proposed Chinese territorial map for the South China Sea, you can see it is:

Absurd. A blatant expansionist territory grab.

Clear as day.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

American objectives, Chinese objectives or some other countries’ objectives, there are hardly any secrets in this high contested body of water - South China See.

Although winners and losers will take years to be sorted out, one thing is certain; the US will not walk away from South China Sea as easily as China wishes.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

It is mainly the fault of the U.S. and Japan that China is what she is today. We were so eager to give them our jobs and our technology and after they become the 2nd largest economy in the world and begin flexing their muscle we say we have to increase our own defense spending to protect us from them. This is all just a game and the winners are the greedy corporations and the Military Industrial Complex and the losers are the average citizens of all the countries involved.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Login to leave a comment

Facebook users

Use your Facebook account to login or register with JapanToday. By doing so, you will also receive an email inviting you to receive our news alerts.

Facebook Connect

Login with your JapanToday account

User registration

Articles, Offers & Useful Resources

A mix of what's trending on our other sites