MANILA, Philippines Jul 28: Any Asian aggressor who violates the sovereignty of other countries in the region risks punitive counteractions, just like what Russia is confronting now for its invasion of Ukraine, the US secretary of the Navy said in a veiled warning to China’s increasingly assertive behavior.
Carlos Del Toro told The Associated Press in an interview Tuesday night in Manila that the US military focus in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly in the disputed South China Sea, would never slacken and in fact, has intensified despite the war in Ukraine.
He did not name China but underscored that Beijing has encroached on sovereign waters of its Asian neighbors and violated international law with impunity. He renewed assurances by President Joe Biden that the US would honor its obligations under a 1951 Mutual Defense Treaty in case Philippine forces, ships, and aircraft come under at- tack in the disputed South China Sea, where Manila and Beijing have had increasingly tense territorial spats in the last decade.
Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan, and Brunei also lay claim to the strategic waterway, one of the world’s busiest, which China claims virtually in its entirety on historical grounds. Beijing rejected a 2016 international arbitration ruling that invalidated its claims and continues to defy the landmark decision. “As President Biden has said, if one country violates one inch of Filipino sovereignty, whether it be at sea or onshore or an offshore island, we will be there to support the Filipino nation and the Filipino people in every possible way,” Del Toro said.
China’s move to transform seven disputed reefs into missile-protected islands bases in the Spratlys, the most hotly contested section of the South China Sea, “is very concerning” and prompted the US and other Western nations to press on with the freedom of navigation patrols around the Chinese-claimed territories to underscore “that they are not in the possession of the PRC,” he said, referring to the People’s Republic of China. Chinese officials were not immediately available for comment on Del Toro’s re-marks but they have repeatedly warned the US to stay away from what they say is a purely Asian dispute. Chinese forces have at times responded to the US and Australian aerial and sea patrols by firing flares and using jamming equipment to warn them to move away. Some US Navy ships have been chased closely, according to US military officials. The Chinese actions increase the risk of miscalculations and US forces have been trained “to be very disciplined” and to stick to long-established rules of engagement to avoid confrontations, Del Toro said.
