China’s state-owned and controlled media posted a news story and photo, where it seized control of an uninhabited feature in the South China Sea, a clear violation of the 2002 informal code of conduct it agreed to with the 10 Southeast Asian Nations.
The shadow play at the West Philippine Sea raises the temperature and increases the risks of confrontation.
Chinese Coast Guard vessels’ actions in the West Philippine Sea are getting bolder and more irritating, as they sailed close to Zambales, Pangasinan, and up to the La Union coasts in the country’s western seaboard.
At this point, the US cannot afford to pause its military aid program to the Philippines, just like in Egypt and Israel where the US wanted to maintain peace and stability in the Middle East.
China is attempting to create a buffer zone in the South China Sea, militarizing artificial islands to keep away the US and its allies from patrolling the strategic waterway where about $3 trillion worth of annual trade passes.
