US Navy Destroyer Docks in Shanghai despite Tensions on South China Sea

The South China Sea won’t be an exception to the US military’s policy of operating wherever the law allows.

The bill includes a South China Sea Initiative that authorizes the USA secretary of defense, with the concurrence of the secretary of state, to provide assistance and training programs aimed at “increasing maritime security and maritime domain awareness of foreign countries along the South China Sea”.

President Xi is now in Manila to attend the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation(APEC), where talks about the tensions in the South China Sea are expected to be tackled on the sidelines.

China was the real victim in the South China Sea as it had had “dozens” of its islands and reefs in the Spratlys illegally occupied by three of the other claimants, Liu said.

China has urged the USA side to be discreet “to avoid sending wrong signals to regional countries”; and says Japan has no right to wade into the issue.

Satellite photographs show construction is finished on a 3,000m airstrip on Fiery Cross Reef.

Beijing claims virtually the entire South China Sea and has sought to reinforce its position by rapidly constructing artificial islands capable of hosting military facilities.

He also repeated Beijing’s standard line that while China’s building work is for defence, its main focus is civilian.

China is building facilities like lighthouses, while protecting the environment, Liu added. He is also scheduled to attend the East Asia summit in Kuala Lumpur later this week.

The meetings are not the appropriate occasion to discuss the South China Sea disputes, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry, which holds that the issue should be addressed by China and concerned ASEAN members in bilateral channels.

“We believe that the United States, in accordance with the Taiwan Relations Act, should continue to make available to Taiwan such defense articles and services as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self- defense”, the statement said.

“Sometimes countries may have a few disagreements, yet our navies are able to operate safely at sea”, Harry Marsh, commanding officer of the USS Stethem, the first navy ship to dock in China since last month’s freedom of navigation patrols by a US warship, said during a visit to the port of Shanghai on Monday.