DOWNSIDE LEGACY AT TWO DEGREES OF PRESIDENT CLINTON
SECTION: ASIA
SUBSECTION: SOUTH CHINA SEA
Revised 8/15/99
SOUTH CHINA SEA
Wall Street Journal 12/16/98 ".Preoccupied as they are with the here and now of the regional economic crisis, Asean leaders meeting this week in Hanoi have not forgotten the future. That is why China's newest forays in the South China Sea are a hot topic of discussion and may be the target of formal, if oblique, criticism.In an interview with the Far Eastern Economic Review last week, Singaporean Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong said he doesn't believe Beijing would risk alienating Asean by trying to exploit the organization's preoccupation with Asia's financial crisis in order to strengthen China's position in the disputed Spratly Islands chain. Clearly, however, Asean is concerned. If China's buildup on Mischief Reef goes unchallenged, what's next Because Mischief Reef lies within the Philippines 200 nautical-mile Exclusive Economic Zone, it has fallen to Manila to make a fuss. The Chinese frigates permanently stationed off the reef are part of a beefed-up presence that now includes at least 200 workers, including military personnel, and the construction of a base capable of taking helicopters. Beijing continues to maintain that it all has to do with fishing. But it is now apparent that the facilities under construction are intended to permit an unprecedented projection of Chinese military power in the area.."
South China Morning Post 12/28/98 AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE in Manila ".A senior American congressman who has inspected the disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea has accused Washington of playing down China's "aggression" in the area. In his report to the chairman of the US House Internal Relations Committee, epresentative Dana Rohrabacher said the Chinese Navy had been engaged in a "de facto encirclement of Spratly Islands" by constructing military posts such as those discovered in the Philippine-claimed Mischief Reef last month. This "aggression" by the Chinese "threatens trade and military sea lanes vital to the United States and our allies", Mr Rohrabacher said in his report. "For two years, the State Department and the Pentagon have pursued an ostrich policy of burying their heads in the sand, downplaying these dangerous developments." ."
AP 1/7/99 ".The territorial dispute over the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea is an Asian matter in which other countries should not meddle, the Chinese ambassador to the Philippines said Thursday in remarks aimed at the United States. ``I think we can solve the problem ourselves,'' Ambassador Guan Dengming said. ``It's our problem. We don't want other countries to interfere.'' On Monday, the U.S. State Department renewed its appeal to China to avoid any actions that would increase tensions in the Spratlys. State Department spokesman James Rubin urged Beijing to live up to promises to seek a peaceful settlement. Other countries should show restraint as well, he said. The Spratlys, which straddle vital sea lanes, are claimed in whole or in part by the Philippines, China, Taiwan, Vietnam, Brunei and Malaysia. Tensions between the Philippines and China heated up in October after China began enlarging structures it had built in 1995 on Mischief Reef.."
AFP 1/19/98 Freeper Jolly ".Philippine Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado warned Tuesday of increased Chinese naval activities in the disputed Spratly Islands after it completes building what appear to be military structures there. Mercado said the Philippines expects the Chinese to complete the permanent structures on Mischief Reef by the end of the month. "We expect an increase in military activity on the part of the People's Republic of China and we expect to see more naval vessels, this time no longer the escort vessels, survey ships or supply ships that we see," he said in a news briefing. "I think the first frigate that we saw may be the first swallow in the summer that we expect," he said, referring to recent reconnaissance photographs by the Philippine Air Force. Mercado said the frigates monitored off a Chinese occupied shoal were armed with surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles.."
Reuters 2/25/99 - Freeper LPH2 "...The top leaders of China and Vietnam agreed in Beijing on Thursday to resolve the two long-standing dispute of sovereignty in the Spratly Islands. The Spratlys are a cluster of potentially oil-rich islets, reefs and rocky outcrops in the South China Sea claimed wholly or in part by China, Taiwan, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia and Brunei. The trip coincided with the 20th anniversary of a two-week war fought between the two sides. Chinese troops crossed into Vietnam on February 17, 1979, to punish Hanoi for its decision a few months earlier to invade Cambodia, which was run by China's then-ally Pol Pot of the Khmer Rouge. The fighting ended on March 5 after Vietnamese troops inflicted heavy casualties on the Chinese...."
The Florida Times-Union 2/27/99 "...A military crisis may be developing in the South China Sea - one that, unlike the Serbian civil war, involves a legitimate U.S. interest. Recent photos from American spy planes indicate China is rapidly turning Woody Island, which has a 7,300-foot runway, into a giant military base. Woody is one of the Paracel Islands, which are located off Vietnam's coast. China also is buying 300 jets from Russia and is developing its own line of fighter bombers. It is believed that the Woody base will be used as a refueling station for fighter planes headed for the Spratly Islands to the south. China is one of several countries claiming the Spratlys, which have oil reserves and good fishing waters. Military intelligence officials say Beijing plans to slowly gain control of hundreds of tiny islands that form an arch stretching from Japan to Indonesia. Taiwan is one of those islands. China already is deploying large numbers of short-range ballistic missiles on its coastline, about 100 miles from Taiwan. And the Philippines is one of the countries claiming part of the Spratlys. The United States is obligated, under treaties, to defend both countries....Besides, American troops are scattered all around the world; there are not enough readily available military resources left to ''stare down'' China. Also, the United States lost a lot of maneuverability a few years ago when the Filipinos forced the closure of the last American military base on their soil. Now that they feel threatened by China, they are reaping what they sowed. Feelings have gotten so tense that the Philippines bombed Chinese installations on Mischief Reef, one of the Spratlys, in 1995. Once China's planes have greater range, that isn't likely to happen again....China in the past has not been shy about seizing islands. The Paracel Islands used to be Vietnamese property. China seized them when Hanoi and Saigon were preoccupied with the Vietnam War. In all probability, the United States is going to have to accept some Chinese domination of Asia. U.S. military resources are not limitless. ..."
Heritage Foundation 2/22/99 Richard D. Fisher, Jr. Freeper Jolly "...During the Cold War, the military alliance between the United States and the Philippines, embodied in the 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty, was instrumental in deterring the spread of Soviet communism in Asia. This once-strong relationship, however, has been essentially moribund since U.S. air and naval forces departed their bases in the Philippines in 1992. The lack of defense cooperation between old allies has created a power vacuum that China has been exploiting. Since 1995, for example, with little reaction from the Clinton Administration, China has built and expanded structures on Mischief Reef in the Spratly Island chain, about 150 miles from Philippine territory but over 800 miles away from the Chinese mainland. The Clinton Administration needs to tell China clearly that such actions undermine peace in Southeast Asia. It also needs to exercise leadership to ensure that the U.S.-Philippine alliance serves both Philippine and U.S. security..."
Kanwa Intelligence Briefs 2/21/99 Andre Pinkov "...As the pictures recently shown by the China Central Television Station revealed, the J8D in-flight refueling fighter planes have already equipped the naval air force... After obtaining around 24 JH7 planes and at least 24 J8D planes to be used together with its 50 SU27 and H6 fighter planes, the Chinese navy has gained the control of the air above the South China Sea, unnoticed....."
New York Times 2/23/99 James Webb "...But whether or not China becomes a global threat in the future is irrelevant to its activities in Asia today. China is definitely on the move, and its full intentions are far from clear. Last month both The Guangming Daily, a Chinese newspaper, and Taiwan's South China Morning Post reported that the Chinese air force had altered its defensive posture to one focusing mainly on attack readiness, including joint operations involving ground and naval forces. Having benefited from years of technology transfers, many of them from American corporations, the Chinese air force now possesses anti-electronic jamming and air-refueling capabilities as well as greatly improved weapon systems that include air-to-air and air-to-ground missiles, high-precision guided bombs and improved firing control equipment.... Over the past several months the Chinese have also stepped up construction of a military base in the Paracel Islands, 260 miles off the coast of Danang, Vietnam. The base includes a 7,000-foot runway capable of handling a wide array of combat and refueling aircraft. In addition, the Chinese have expanded an installation in the Spratly Islands off the coast of the Philippines. This installation, according to the Philippine military, now appears to hold a helipad, radar, gun emplacements and a four-story structure whose size belies Chinese claims that they have built shelters for fisherman there. Both the Paracels and the Spratlys are contested territories, neither of them recognized as Chinese under international law. With respect to the most recent overt threat to Taiwan, the Chinese protest is disingenuous on its face. The Chinese Government knows that we should no more apologize for including Taiwan in plans for missile defense than we did for including South Korea in similar plans. Our having agreed in principle that Taiwan might someday rejoin China does not mean that we would ever allow such a unification to be coerced. If the reports of bases in the Paracels and Spratlys are accurate, they present a far more serious threat to regional security...."
The Manila Times 2/23/99 Johnna R. Villaviray "...China has apparently won the support of Germany, current chair of the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM), against discussing territorial disputes in the South China Sea. This after the Chinese ambassador in Bonn, Germany, threatened that Chinese Foreign Minister Tang Jiaxuan will walk out of the meeting if Manila insists on discussing the claims. In a report to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), Philippine Charge d'Affaires Antonio Rodriguez said the Germans are not inclined to back the country's moves to include the conflicting claims in the ASEM's agenda..."
Financial Times 3/04/99 Stephen Fidler and James Kynge "…Now, all of a sudden (or so it seems) a new issue has emerged which could expose the fault lines between the two countries: missile defence….Beijing is violently opposed to the introduction of a theatre missile shield anywhere in Asia, as an unwelcome shift in the balance of force there. But it is the prospect of a US-furnished missile shield for Taiwan, which it considers a renegade province, which has provoked the most extreme reaction….Beijing fears that a missile shield for Taiwan would encourage the island to declare independence because it would neutralise Beijing's threat to use force in that event…. Military experts say that the pattern of China's arms acquisitions and deployment shows it is preparing primarily for two theatres of operation, Taiwan and the South China Sea. Of the two, the South China Sea - which China claims virtually in its entirety - has the greater strategic significance. About 15 per cent of the world's cross-border trade passes through the sea every year. If China controlled these sea lanes, it would have a potential stranglehold over not only commercial but also military traffic through the heart of Asia.China's recent construction of structures on a reef near the Philippines shows that Beijing has no intention of letting go of its claim to the Spratly islands - several hundred dispersed islands and reefs scattered through the sea, the analysts say. Legally, too, Beijing is preparing to exercise sovereignty. In 1992, it promulgated a law that allows its navy to "evict foreign naval vessels", and rules that foreign navy ships must apply for permission before crossing the sea…."
AFP 3/05/99 "…China has built two more concrete structures on a disputed outcrop in the South China Sea in violation of an earlier agreement with the Philippines, the Philippines armed forces reported Friday. Philippine Air Force planes on a reconnaissance mission reported sighting the two new structures, which brings to six the total of concrete garrison-like buildings on Mischief Reef, the armed forces said. One of the new structures was described as three storeys high, while the second one was two storeys high, it said. Mischief Reef is part of the disputed Spratly islands chain, which is believed to lie atop vast oil and mineral deposits in vital sea lanes in the South China Sea. The islands are being claimed in whole or in part by the Philippines, China, Vietnam, Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan…."
Philippine Daily Inquirer 3/10/99 Cynthia Balana "…NEW STRUCTURES believed put up by China were seen by the military at the Magsaysay Reef in the Philippine-claimed Kalayaan Island Group in the disputed Spratlys. This was disclosed yesterday by Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado during a press conference in Camp Aguinaldo. According to Mercado, Magsaysay Reef was on the same atoll as Mascardo Reef although they were technically regarded as separate reefs. Magsaysay is approximately 325 nautical miles from Puerto Princesa and 250 nautical miles from Balabac island. It is located in the southwesternmost portion of the Kalayaan islands. The Chinese-occupied Mischief Reef, on the other hand, is 180 nautical miles from Puerto Princesa…."
The Manila Times 3/10/99 Raffy Jimenez Johnna Villaviray "…"We are still verifying if the structure is the (handiwork) of China or Vietnam. But we know Vietnam has not been building structures and we know who is on a construction boom," Mercado said in a news conference…."The usual trademark (of China) is increased naval activity, putting up of markers then octagonal structures and, finally, concrete structures," he said, obviously referring to the Chinese construction in Mischief Reef. At the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), there are suspicions that the Vietnamese were behind the construction activities in Magsaysay Reef because the area is sandwiched by two reefs occupied by Vietnamese forces--Kalantyaw (Amboyna) Cay and Mascardo (Barque-Canada) Reef. "If that it true, then this development is graver (than the construction in Mischief Reef) since Vietnam is a fellow Asean," said Undersecretary Lauro Baja….Vietnam already occupies 23 islands and reefs in the Spratlys; China has seven, the Philippines has eight; Malaysia has two; while Taiwan has occupied one reef….Meanwhile, the defense and military establishments said that a total of P8 million had been appropriated for the repair of the airstrip at Pag-asa Island. The repair, Mercado said, is part of the regular maintenance and would not precede improvements on the military capabilities in the area. "There is no reason for China to complain because this is repair, Philippine-style. We are not imitating them, ours is the real repair," Mercado added. China had earlier warned the country against making improvements in Pag-asa Island, claiming these activities are "provocative." The military said the territorial dispute in the Spratlys would remain a veritable flashpoint in the Southeast Asia region. It viewed the recent construction in Magsaysay Reef as an alarming development. "China's construction of naval bases in the disputed territories represent a de facto encirclement of the Spratlys and an intimidating military presence along the vital sea routes in the South China Sea," a senior Army general told The Times…"
Financial Times 3/11/99 Peter Montagnon and Tony Tassell "…Joseph Estrada, Philippine president, called yesterday for closer ties with the US amid growing tensions in the South China Sea over the disputed Spratly Islands. Mr Estrada said the need for Washington to hold the balance of power in the region had been reinforced since the "sudden" construction last year of a large structure by China in Mischief Reef in the Spratlys. His call came as Manila identified newly built structures in a previously undeveloped part of the Spratlys, which has been claimed by eight countries…."
AFP 3/22/99 "…China on Monday rejected Philippine demands to dismantle structures on a disputed South China Sea reef as experts from both sides opened a two-day meeting to resolve the row. "The Meiji Reef is Chinese territory and we have full and sufficient basis as evidence to support our argument," Chinese assistant foreign minister Wang Yi said, when asked if Beijing was prepared to meet Manila's demands to tear down the structures. Wang was referring to the Chinese name of Mischief Reef in the Spratlys island chain which is at the center of a diplomatic storm between Manila and Beijing…. "
AFP 3/21/99 "…Chinese personnel on a disputed reef lobbed objects at a Philippine plane conducting a surveillance of structures Manila believes are for Beijing's military use, ahead of a key meeting between the two sides on Monday. A variety of objects were thrown Saturday at the Philippine air force Nomad plane, carrying AFP journalists, as it passed within 50 metres (150 feet) of the Mischief Reef structures at an altitude of about 30 metres (100 feet). The flight by the Philippines' Western Command which is responsible for monitoring the South China Sea territory, was one of the closest such sorties to date to the contested islet… Chinese in civilian dress threw the unidentified objects at the plane by hand as it made its third and last fly-by but no damage or casualties were sustained…."
AP 3/17/99 "…Philippines President Joseph Estrada discussed a world summit on the next millennium and territorial disputes in the South China Sea with U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Wednesday. During a half-hour meeting, they also discussed natural disasters which have affected the Philippines, the Asian financial crisis and a U.N. report on the prosecution of Cambodia's Khmer Rouge leaders, the U.N. spokesman's office said…"
Chinese Embassy Web Pages post 1997 "…China has indisputable sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters. China was the first to discover and name the islands as the Nansha Islands and the first to exercise sovereign jurisdiction over them. There are ample historical and jurisprudential evidence to support this, and the international community has long recognized it. During the World War II, Japan launched the war of aggression against China and occupied most of China's territory, including the Nansha Islands. It was explicitly provided in the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation and other international documents that all the territories Japan had stolen from China should be restored to China, and naturally, they included the Nansha Islands. In December 1946, the then Chinese government sent senior officials to the Nansha Islands for their recovery. A take-over ceremony was held on the islands and a monument erected in commemoration of it, and troops were sent over on garrison duty. In 1952, the Japanese Government officially stated that it renounced all its "rights, title and claim to Taiwan, Penghu Islands as well as Nansha and Xisha Islands", thus formally returning the Nansha Islands to China. All countries are clear about this part of historical background. As a matter of fact, the United States recognized China's sovereignty over the Nansha Islands in a series of subsequent international conferences and international practice. For quite a long period of time after the World War II, there had been no such a thing as the so-called issue of the South China Sea. No country in the area surrounding the south China Sea had challenged China's exercise of sovereignty over the Nansha Islands and their adjacent waters….
China maintains that all the parties concerned should adopt a restrained, calm and constructive approach on the question of the Nansha Islands. In recent years, countries like Viet Nam and the Philippines have sent troops to seize some uninhabited islands and reefs of the Nansha Islands, destroyed the marks of sovereignty erected by China there, and arrested, detained or driven away by force Chinese fishermen fishing in the South China Sea. On this question, the Chinese side has always persisted in having discussions and settling relevant problems with the countries concerned through diplomatic channels and by peaceful means. It fully testifies to China's sincerity in preserving regional stability and the overall interests of bilateral friendly relations….. The question of the South China Sea is a question between China and the relevant countries. The Chinese government has consistently advocated settlement of the disputes between China and the countries concerned through amicable bilateral consultations. Involvement by any external force is undesirable and will only further complicate the situation. China and the countries concerned are fully capable and confident of handling their disputes appropriately. Peace and tranquillity in the South China Sea area can be maintained on a long-term basis. At present, there is no crisis at all in that area. The kind of tension in the South China Sea which has been played up, even with ulterior motives, is contrary to the facts. Due to force majeure, the shelter facilities for fishermen built by a Chinese local fishery department on Meiji Reef of the Nansha Islands of China a few years ago were seriously damaged, thus directly threatening the safety of life of Chinese fishery personnel. Recently, the Chinese local fishery department has done appropriate repair and reinforcement work on the existing shelter facility, solely for the purpose of peaceful uses, mainly ensuring the safety of life of the fishery personnel…."
Chinatimes 4/16/99 "...US Defense Department officials have warned the Philippines to expect an increasing Chinese naval presence in disputed South China Sea islands in the next five years, a Filipino official said Thursday. "In a recent briefing, Pentagon officials informed (Philippine ambassador to Washington Raul Rabe) that in five years' time the Chinese would be projecting even larger naval forces into the Spratlys," Foreign Undersecretary Lauro Baja said. "This being so, Mischief Reef, aside from being a potential naval air base on its own right, would be a key Chinese command and control facility in support of that projection," he added...."
AFP 4/29/99 "...China and the Philippines are to step up top-level military exchanges to stabilize ties which have been unsettled by rival claims over a South China Sea coral reef, a senior Filipino official said Wednesday. Defense Secretary Orlando Mercado said in a statement that he met with Chinese ambassador to Manila Fu Ying and "discussed the need for us to develop our military relationship." "As a consequence, me must have better exchanges and more frequent exchanges, especially at the top level, between the leaders of the military establishment," he added. No specifics were provided.... "I think as time goes on, we will be able to discuss these things in more detail. This is our first meeting and our first exchange." Mercado said he extended to Fu an invitation to China to take part in "our little confidence building measure" with Vietnam, which along with Brunei, Malaysia and Taiwan also claim all or part of the Spratlys. Manila and Hanoi agreed earlier this year to a series of football friendlies between their armed forces teams, with one match to be staged at Philippine-held Thitu island...."
South China Morning Post 5/4/99 AGENCIES "...Asian countries are likely to add between 200 and 300 warships to their navies within the next two decades, despite the region's economic crisis, defence industry experts said yesterday. The role of naval defence has been highlighted in recent months by the dispute between the Philippines and China over the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea and by the lingering threat of war between the two Koreas. Japan and the Philippines were especially strong potential markets, delegates in Singapore for the International Maritime Defence Exhibition and Conference said. "The marketplace in the next 15 years in Asia is going to be over US$50 billion (HK$386.8 billion), which means over 300 ships," said Robin Keil, of US-based naval consulting firm AMI International...."
Insight Magazine Vol. 13, No. 17 5/12/97 By Timothy W. Maier "...China is making a statement in the Pacific that threatens several of America's most important allies and could force a showdown with the United States. The Red Chinese plan, say U.S. intelligence sources, is to expand its military hegemony to dominate trade in the South China Sea. It's called "power projection," and Pentagon officials, China experts and senior intelligence specialists privately are saying that it could erupt in bloodshed on the water. . . . . These experts say the United States is facing a multibillion-dollar military threat. And, to complicate matters, it is being subsidized by the U.S. bond market, senior national-security officials tell Insight. It is money from American pension funds, insurance companies and securities that may never be paid back.. . . . China's plan is militarily to dominate the first tier of islands to the west of Japan and the Philippines and then project its force to the next "island tier," leaving America's most important allies in the Pacific surrounded by the Chinese military and, short of nuclear war, defenseless...."
WorldNetDaily 5/17/99 J R Nyquist "... China, too, has been engaged in a serious buildup of forces opposite Taiwan. There is also China's invasion of the Spratly Islands, which are located more than 800 miles from China yet 140 miles from the Philippines...As it happens, Taiwan's lifeline runs near to the Spratlys. On Jan.12 of this year, Taiwan President Lee, taking note of Beijing's obvious attempts to encircle his small island country, called on his fellow citizens "to raise their vigilance against the military threat from China." Four days earlier, on Jan. 8, Chinese President Jiang Zemin laid out the mission of the People's Liberation Army in a speech: "We must resolutely safeguard the unity of the motherland and the nation's territorial integrity." Unity, of course, is the war cry of the Communist Chinese against the Nationalist Chinese on Taiwan. President Jiang also warned that the Chinese People's Liberation Army should prepare itself for two things: nuclear war and internal uprisings. Soon thereafter, in mid January, China conducted bomber and missile exercises in which Chinese forces practiced targeting American troops in the Far East. The Chinese have also announced radical changes in military doctrine. The Chinese Air Force was placed in "offensive mode" in January, and China's army doctrine was altered to one of global war-fighting...."
www.scmp.com 5/18/99 Reuters Freeper Thanatos "...China pledged yesterday to ensure freedom of navigation in the South China Sea where it is in dispute with five other nations over ownership of several remote islands. Beijing's ambassador in Manila, Fu Ying, said keeping the sea - regarded as one of the world's most vital shipping lanes - free and safe for navigation was in the interests of everyone, including China, Japan and the US. Asked if China could guarantee freedom of navigation in the area, she replied: "Yes, certainly"...."
International Herald Tribune 5/19/99 Michael Richardson Freeper Stand Watch Listen "...With relations between the United States and China strained following the bombing of the Chinese Embassy in Belgrade and subsequent violent demonstrations in China, some officials and analysts say that Beijing will pursue a more assertive Asian policy to show that it is a rising power that must not be taken for granted. A Philippine official said that China had occupied 11 islands and reefs in the Spratlys in recent years, including Mischief Reef in 1995, about 135 nautical miles from the Philippines, to strengthen its claim over much of the South China Sea and the valuable oil, natural gas and fisheries in the area. ..."
AFP 5/16/99 "...In one scenario, three enemy destroyers sail into the waters around the Spratly islands. Suddenly, striking from beyond the range of the ships' air defenses, two Philippine Air Force F-5 jets blast them to pieces with laser-guided bombs. For the time being, this kind of scenario exists only in the type of computer simulators displayed at a recent arms exhibition here, where foreign firms showed off the high-tech weaponry they hope to sell to the poorly equipped Philippine military. Manila has no laser-guided bombs. But it does have a growing fear that China, the largest and most powerful of the claimants to the Spratlys, is taking advantage of Philippine weakness to seize more areas of the disputed South China Sea chain. The growing Chinese threat has increased public support for the modernization of the Philippine military. But the threat has not prompted either the acceleration or the expansion of the modernization program....."
Asia Pulse 5/17/99 "...President Joseph Estrada has sought the help of Filipino-Chinese businessmen in working out a deal with China for the joint exploration and use of resources in the disputed Spratly Islands. The President asked the Filipino-Chinese businessmen, who are scheduled to embark on a trade mission to China next week, to find ways of finding an alternative solution to the territorial dispute between Manila and Beijing over the Mischief Reef. The disputed reef is about 180 nautical miles from the Philippine province of Palawan..... "An economic solution could very well be the basis to put this (the Spratlys dispute) to rest. Getting businessmen to clinch a deal may be the answer to this dispute," Pardo said on the President"s weekly programs JEEP ni Erap: Ang Pasada ng Pangulo. The Philippines and China are among six countries claiming wholly or in part the Spratly Islands, The other four are Brunei, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam. Reports said initial surveys indicate the islands have vast oil and other natural resources...."
Reuters 5/18/99 "...China pledged yesterday to ensure freedom of navigation in the South China Sea where it is in dispute with five other nations over ownership of several remote islands. Beijing's ambassador in Manila, Fu Ying, said keeping the sea - regarded as one of the world's most vital shipping lanes - free and safe for navigation was in the interests of everyone, including China, Japan and the US. Asked if China could guarantee freedom of navigation in the area, she replied: "Yes, certainly"...."
Philippine Daily Inquirer 5/19/99 Dona Pazzibugan and Christine Avendaño "...Continuing his diplomatic attacks on China's aggressive activities in the Spratlys, President Estrada yesterday said Southeast Asian countries must prevent ''any power from controlling the South China Sea.'' Mr. Estrada also called the attention of foreign investors to the Philippines which he said would ''fulfill the promise of the Pacific century.'' Any power controlling the South China Sea will dominate Southeast Asia, ''including the strategic points that connect the Western Pacific with the Indian Ocean and the Persian Gulf,'' he said in a speech before about 500 top business leaders from around the world. He was addressing the business leaders in an investor's forum sponsored by Credit Lyonnais Securities Asia. He said his government would use ''all diplomatic avenues'' to deal with an increasingly militarized and potentially threatening China to ''promote the best interest of the region.'' ''Our goal is to build a safer Asia as part of global community of nations,'' he said....."
Scmp.com 5/29/99 RAISSA ROBLES "...The Supreme Court was asked yesterday to stop a military exercises accord with the US approved by the Senate on Thursday. The move came as Washington debated a resolution that could send swift military aid to the Philippines..... Congressman Dana Rohrabacher told Philippine congressman Roilo Golez yesterday that he had managed to insert an amendment favourable to Manila in a resolution being deliberated by the US House of Representatives. An amendment to House Resolution 1908 would allow UH-1 helicopters to be donated to the Philippines, along with A-4 aircraft and the Coast Guard cutter Point Evans, said Mr Rohrabacher, who had accompanied Mr Golez on an aerial tour of the Spratlys in December....In urging the amendment, Congressman Rohrabacher said: "The ongoing Chinese construction of naval bases in the Spratlys and repeated incursions of warships and fishing fleets into Philippine territorial waters, have increased the urgency of our long-time ally's need to modernise its naval and air patrol capabilities." Mr Rohrabacher called the Philippines a "frontline nation against the growing designs of China to militarily control the Pacific in the 21st century"...."
6/8/99 AP Freeper Thanatos "...Manila will continue to protect its territorial claims in the South China Sea with naval patrols, despite a warning from Beijing that they could heighten tension, an official said yesterday. Presidential Executive Secretary Ronaldo Zamora said the patrols would continue, specifically around Scarborough Shoal, where a Chinese fishing boat sank last month after being chased by a Philippine Navy patrol ship. All crew aboard the boat were rescued. "We have a right to patrol these waters," Mr Zamora said...."
6/9/99 AP Washington Post Freeper Thanatos "...The Philippine Supreme Court ordered President Joseph Estrada and several Cabinet members today to defend the constitutionality of a U.S. military pact which opponents claim was improperly approved. Last month, the Philippine Senate passed the Visiting Forces Agreement, which allows a resumption of U.S. naval ship visits and large-scale joint military exercises in the country...."
6/11/99 AFP scmp Freeper Thanatos "...Philippine claims to a shoal in the South China Sea were "irresponsible", Beijing said yesterday. "Huangyan Island [also known as Scarborough Shoal] is Chinese territory and the international community, including the Philippines, has never objected to that before," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said. She hoped the Philippines would "not make any more irresponsible remarks of this kind". Scarborough Shoal falls within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone...."
The Nation (Thailand) 6/25/99 "...NOW the Spratly disputes are turning inward, hitting the core of Asean. Philippine President Joseph Estrada has said that his government will lodge a diplomatic protest with Malaysia over the occupation of a rock in the disputed area. Estrada's statement has changed the nature of political engagement among the claimants other than China, which has so far remained benign. Philippine Defence Secretary Orlando Mercado seems to increase his country's stakes every time he comments on the disputes. This time he said reconnaissance planes had spotted a newly constructed concrete platform on a rock about 1,000 kilometres Southeast of Manila. Both the Philippines and Malaysia have claimed this shoal. He said Malaysia had built the platform with a two-story building and radar facilities.....One has to sympathise with the Philippines, which has tried unsuccessfully to garner collective Asean support for its current diplomatic squabble over the Mischief Reef. Over the past few months Manila has been highlighting the potential threat of China's military-related presence on the disputed island. But Asean has tolerated China's activities on the Spratlys for fear any protest would jeopardise its overall relationship. Both the Philippines and Vietnam have agreed to draft the regional code of conduct for the consideration of Asean and China. If it is completed, and accepted by all, it can serve as a guideline for claimants' conduct in the South China Sea. In the absence of such a framework, China and Asean claimants are trying to reposition themselves...."
China Times AFP 6/30/99 "...China on Tuesday insisted the disputed Spratly Island chain in the South China Sea were its territory and said it had warned Malaysia not to build there. "Chinese sovereignty over the Nansha (Spratly) Islands and adjacent waters is indisputable," foreign ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue told a news conference. Zhang was speaking in response to recent reports that Malaysia had built facilities on the Yuya Shoal and Boji Reef in the area..... "The Chinese government has always committed itself to stability in the South China Sea," Zhang said. "We strongly demand that relevant countries stick to the principles of the joint statement issued by Chinese and ASEAN leaders in 1997." She urged all countries to stop any action that would possibly aggravate the situation and to jointly safeguard the stability of the South China Sea. The potentially oil-rich Spratlys which straddle vital sea lanes are claimed in whole or in part by Brunei, China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam. ...."
http://www.stratfor.com/asia/default.htm?section=2 6/28/99 "...In the latest installment of the Spratlys saga, Vietnam on June 28 spoke out against recent construction on the disputed islands undertaken by Malaysia. A spokesperson for Vietnam's Foreign Ministry reiterated Vietnam's claim to the Spratlys and described Malaysia's construction of a two-storey building, a radar antenna and a helipad on Investigator Shoal as "a violation of Vietnam's sovereignty." The Philippines officially protested the Malaysian construction on June 24, charging that Investigator Shoal - which Manila calls Pawikan Shoal - falls within the Philippines' 200-mile exclusive economic zone. The Spratlys, which control vital sea lanes and are believed to hold valuable natural resources, are claimed, in whole or in part, by Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei, the Philippines, China and Taiwan. The four ASEAN member claimants together protested Chinese construction on Mischief Reef in the Spratlys last year. The nations' inability to resolve their own disputes over the islands illustrates an important feature of Southeast Asian politics. The threat posed by China's claim on the Spratlys is clear to all in Southeast Asia. China lacks a sufficient blue water navy to project military power in the region...."
Stratfor.com 7/13/99 "…Taiwan has refused to back down from President Lee Teng-hui's declaration that the island was abandoning the "One China" concept. Lee's abandonment of one ambiguous policy for a slightly less ambiguous but much more confrontational one -- just a step short of a declaration of Taiwan's independence -- has drawn threats from mainland China and subdued but substantial concern from the United States. On July 13, Lee reiterated Taiwan's new policy of national sovereignty. "The Republic of China has always been a sovereign state, not a local government," Lee said to visiting Honduran Foreign Minister Roberto Flores Bermudez. And to emphasize Taiwan's newly declared sovereignty, the Taiwanese Foreign Ministry issued a statement on July 13 proclaiming Taiwanese sovereignty over the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea. The statement condemned recent Philippine and Malaysian activities on the islands and declared that the Spratlys and the entire South China Sea belong to Taiwan "legally, historically, geographically, or in reality."…Taiwan has watched China grow more aggressive in its foreign policy -- pressuring Japan to avoid defensive ties with Taiwan, asserting Beijing's claim to the Spratlys, building a strategic alliance with and purchasing advanced weapons from Russia. Taiwan has also watched as Chinese reformers, struggling against vested interests in the government and military, have been unable to prop up the shaky Chinese economy. Now, with rumors of a devaluation of the yuan again in the wind, hopes for the continued dominance of reformers in Beijing are fading. With a return to old-school Communist leaders and state-centric economic policies in China, Taiwan can only anticipate a deteriorating cross-strait dialogue regardless of its self-declared status. And while China slowly regresses, the U.S. appears to have lost both leverage and commitment in its China policy…Taiwan, anticipating the worst, may be attempting to sabotage U.S. efforts at reconciliation with China in hopes of realigning U.S. policy in the region…."
Associated Press 7/19/99 "...One possible conflict at the meeting [ASEAN] will be over the Spratly Islands, mineral rich dots of land in the vital sea lanes of the South China Sea. The competing claims of China, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Brunei and Taiwan are mentioned at every ASEAN Ministerial Meeting, as the annual gathering is called. Taiwan is not represented at the meetings. Malaysia, which recently built small structures on one of the reefs in the archipelago, says it doesn't want the Spratlys discussed by ASEAN. But the Philippines has insisted it will bring up the issue and that it and Vietnam will put forward a code of conduct over the islets. ASEAN includes Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam. The ASEAN Regional Forum also includes Australia, Canada, the European Union, India and New Zealand...."
Reuters 7/20/99 "…A Chinese fishing boat sank after a collision with a Philippine Navy ship in the second incident in two months involving vessels of the two countries off disputed South China Sea isles, Philippine officials said Tuesday. Another Chinese fishing boat in the area took aboard the crew of the sunken vessel after the collision Monday evening off an isle claimed by Manila in the Spratly Islands, Philippine Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon said, quoting local military reports…."
South China Morning Post 7/30/99 AP "...Joint Philippine-US military exercises planned for early next year were not intended to provoke China, Manila's military chief of staff said yesterday. Although Philippine military officials stressed the drills were not related to tension in the disputed Spratly Islands, Beijing has expressed concern about the warming defence relations between Washington and Manila...."
China Times 8/4/99 AFP "...China on Tuesday cautioned against the holding of joint Philippines-US military exercises near the disputed Spratly islands. Chinese ambassador to the Philippines Fu Ying said Washington should maintain its policy of neutrality regarding the conflicting claims over the South China Sea chain. "In the light of this policy, I think the US will be very careful where they do military exercises and usually, countries would be very careful to stay away from disputed areas," she said in a news conference...."
South China Morning Post 8/5/99 AFP "...Philippine President Joseph Estrada has rebuffed a warning to Manila from China against holding US-Philippine military exercises near the Spratly Islands, saying China should not interfere in this bilateral accord. "I see no reason why they should warn us. This is not within their territory. So I don't think they should interfere with our agreement with the US Government," he said...."
South China Morning Post 8/11/99 Glenn Schloss "...Two US aircraft carriers have conducted exercises in the South China Sea in a move viewed as sending a warning to Beijing as tensions escalate over Taiwan. In a clear show of muscle, the USS Kitty Hawk and USS Constellation and their battle groups were deployed on Saturday and Sunday over a wide area of the sea, much of it claimed by China. It was designed to remind the PLA and Chinese leaders of the deployment of two aircraft carrier battle groups in the Taiwan Strait during the 1996 crisis, analysts said. A United States official said the exercises were deliberately conducted in the South China Sea amid the Taiwan tensions and increasing concern over the Spratly Islands. "This deployment was a nice way to let our friends and potential adversaries know that the US Navy remains committed to maintaining peace and stability throughout the region," the official said. ...."
Jane's Intelligence Review 8/99 "...With the departure of the last US service personnel in 1992, President Ramos hoped that the forward deployment of US naval vessels in other parts of Asia, along with the MDT, would partially make up for the deterrent effect which the US bases had provided for the Philippines for more than 40 years. However, Manila was disappointed with the reaction of the USA during the Mischief Reef crisis. In May 1995 the US State Department issued a statement expressing 'concern' at events in the South China Sea and that it opposed the use of force in resolving the dispute. However, the USA did not feel obliged to aid the Philippines militarily because Washington did not consider the Spratlys to be covered by the MDT, nor did it favour the territorial claims of one country over another in the South China Sea. US-Philippine ties were further strained by the Pentagon's refusal to supply the AFP with intelligence reports of Chinese activities around Mischief Reef....."
Jane's Intelligence Review 8/99 "...Bilateral relations suffered another setback in December 1996 when Washington suspended all port calls by US naval vessels after the Philippine Congress closed a legal loophole that had shielded visiting US military personnel from being prosecuted for crimes committed in the Philip-pines. The annual US-Philippine military exercises were also cancelled. Negotiations began working out a new framework that would govern the legal status of visiting US military personnel to the Philippines. In February 1998, a Visiting Forces Agreement(VFA) was signed by Siazon and US Ambassador Thomas Hubbard. By the terms of the VFA, US service personnel who committed crimes while on duty in the Philippines would be prosecuted by US military courts; those committing crimes off duty would be handled by Philippine courts....."
Jane's Intelligence Review 8/99 "...President Estrada has given the VFA his full backing, despite having voted for the removal of US bases in 1991. In his inaugural speech, Estrada argued that while in 1991 he was fighting for "Philippine sovereignty", now he was standing up for "Philippine security". Estrada declared that until the modernisation of the AFP could be effected, the security of the Philippines would rest on "our treaty obligation with the United States". The VFA, he argued, was in the national interests of the Philippines because it would enable joint US-Philippine military exercises to resume, thus honing the combat skills of AFP personnel and introducing them to modern weapons. Estrada also suggested that the VFA would deter China from expanding further in the Kalayaans....."
Hong Kong Standard 8/12/99 AFP "...The Philippines has supported a Chinese proposal to conduct joint naval patrols against piracy and drug smuggling in the South China Sea, Foreign Secretary Domingo Siazon said yesterday. ``I talked to Defence Secretary (Orlando) Mercado and he agreed to have joint patrolling in the South China Sea,'' Mr Siazon said. Joint patrols were raised by Chinese Agriculture Minister Chen Yaobang during a visit to Manila last month. Mr Siazon, however, said Manila and Beijing would have to work out an agreement for the joint patrol and when it can start. ``We still need to define where in the South China Sea they can have joint patrols. That would be the hard part,'' he said. China and the Philippines are claimants to the Spratlys, a chain of South China Sea islands believed to sit on vast mineral deposits and straddle vital shipping lanes...."