China’s push into western Pacific alarms American allies in Asia

Bloomberg

With the Trump administration warning of a possible war with North Korea, US allies in Asia are sounding the alarm on another risk: a clash with China in the western Pacific.
China has recently accelerated air and naval excursions in sensitive areas near Japan and Taiwan, part of a longstanding quest to expand its military presence further from its shores into the Pacific Ocean. Leaders in Tokyo and Taipei have called on Beijing to back off while strengthening their defenses.
Earlier this month, Japan observed for the first time a Chinese submarine entering the contiguous zone (12 nautical miles to 24 nautical miles from shore) around disputed islets in the East China Sea. That came shortly after Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen warned that China’s increased military patrols around the island threatened to destabilize the region.
President Donald Trump’s “America First” foreign policy has raised concern in Asia about the reliability of the US in helping to stave off Chinese pressure as it gains greater military and economic strength. China has a long-term goal of reuniting with Taiwan, and territorial disputes with countries ranging from Japan to Vietnam to India.
“The unpredictability of the Trump administration encourages Tokyo and Taipei to do more for their own defense,” said Ja Ian Chong, an associate professor with the National University of Singapore who specializes in Asia-Pacific relations. “Unless resolved in such a way that all sides feel simultaneously assured, the actions can increase tensions in East Asia and raise the potential for some sort of incident.”
While Trump’s interactions with President Xi Jinping mostly focussed on North Korea and trade during his first year in office, China’s territorial claims may become more prominent going forward. In a strategy document released last week, the US Defense Department cited China’s military modernization and expansion in the South China Sea as key threats to US power.
China has pushed back against that narrative, with its defense ministry over the weekend calling on the US to abandon a “Cold War” mindset. It blamed “other countries” for citing freedom of navigation concerns to undertake military activities in the South China Sea, where China has undertaken massive land reclamation to strengthen its claim to more than 80 percent of the area.
China’s foreign ministry said the country will take “necessary measures” to safeguard its sovereignty in the South China Sea after a US warship entered waters near the disputed Huangyan Island, also known as Scarborough Shoal.

‘NEW NORMAL’
The Communist Party’s official People’s Daily on Monday accused the US of destroying stability in the South China Sea, and threatened to “enhance and speed up” its military capacity in the waters in response.
China has also dismissed allegations that it is encroaching on Taiwan and Japan. Patrols around Taiwan by Chinese fighter jets, bombers and surveillance aircraft are the
“new normal,” Chinese Air Force spokesman Shen Jinke said last month. The Chinese submarine spotted near disputed islands in the East China Sea was monitoring the movements of two Japanese vessels, the foreign ministry said.
China’s navy began sailing through the “First Island Chain” — including Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines — in 2009. The Air Force followed suit with regular patrols in 2015, and the frequency of flights has increased from “four times per year” then to “several times per month” in 2017, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.
Last year, Tsai said she would increase Taiwan’s defense spending by at least 2 percent each year. Priorities include new missiles, fighter aircraft and ballistic missile defenses. The US continues to sell weapons to Taiwan and is obligated to defend the island under a 1979 law.