Beijing: Xinhua, China’s official news agency, said that by sending a warship to patrol the adjacent waters off Chinese islands in the South China Sea, the United States was making a dangerous attempt to test China’s bottom line in protecting its sovereign rights.
The US claim that it did so to exercise the so-called freedom of navigation rights is totally groundless since China has never violated such rights and has clearly promised to protect the freedom of navigation in the region, the agency said.
Commenting on US defiance of China by sending its warship near the reefs on South China Sea, the state-run The Global Times said ”Pentagon is obviously provoking China…We should stay calm.” An angry reaction by China would only help the US achieve their objective of “irritating” Beijing, it said.
The paper said Washington’s goal is to display its presence, rather than a military standoff with China. It said, however, that despite acting “tactfully,” Beijing should “prepare for the worst.” “This can convince the White House that China, despite its unwillingness, is not frightened to fight a war with the US in the region,” The Global Times concluded.
But Washington has obviously ignored the negative repercussions of such provocation.
First, it will complicate the efforts to settle the South China Sea disputes peacefully, because some of the claimant countries, such as the Philippines, a US ally, will be emboldened to take more provocative actions against China.
Moreover, it will strain the China-US relations and damage mutual trust.
The China-US relationship, which is so important and far-reaching to regional and global peace, stability and prosperity, cannot stand disastrous confrontations or conflicts, the agency said.
Regrettably, US officials indicated that the US Navy will conduct more patrols in the South China Sea in the near future, despite China’s firm opposition and warnings.
