Posted on 12/02/2012 7:54:08 AM PST by mgist
MANILA, Philippines — China is “literally testing the waters” to see how far it can go in provoking America’s tolerance with the plan to board foreign ships as an act of asserting its claim over virtually the entire South China Sea.
Senator Miriam Defensor-Santiago said China has been appearing displeased by US military’s plan to “pivot” its presence to Asia following the planned pull-out of troops from Iran and Afghanistan.
To indicate this sentiment, Santiago said China would make things difficult for the US, its Western allies who have been using the sea as a transit route and members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations where some members have been engaged in disputes with China over areas in the Spratlys in the past years.
However, Santiago warned that China has been pushing its luck in the attempt to provoke “public attention” through antics such as including disputed territories in the map of China printed in newly released electronic passports.
“China is provoking public attention but knows very well she cannot get away with it and that America at some point will put its foot down,” the senator said in a radio interview on Sunday.
It is unfortunate that the Philippines and other countries that would be affected by China’s plan to board foreign ships are caught in the power play it is engaged in with the US, according to Santiago.
“Naggigirian ang dalawang higante (Two giants are in a skirmish). China has become swellheaded because the US has obligations to it that add up to $13 billion,” she explained.
Santiago noted that when the US entered its ongoing financial crisis, its government sold bonds “which is actually an IOU note. Most of these bonds were bought by China.”
The senator said China could be exhibiting a belligerent attitude as a nose-thumbing gesture toward the superpower lender.
By Santiago’s interpretation, China means: “’Akala mo sino ka, nangungutang ka lang sa akin, kaya gagawin ko ang gusto ko (‘You think you’re that special but you’re just borrowing money from me, so I’ll do what I want to do’).”
On the other hand, the senator said China probably felt it was being fenced in by the US’ plan to shift attention to Asia.
“After the announcement to pivot toward Asia, China feels like it is being cornered and could be interpreting this announcement as a challenge (“parang naghahamon”). So literally, China is testing the waters,” she explained.
Santiago added that China’s other tactic would be to stir things up in Association of Southeast Asian Nations, dividing the group between its allies and parties it has been engaged in territorial disputes with.
In July, Cambodia frustrated Philippine officials’ attempts to call attention to China’s intrusion in Scarborough Shoal (Panatag Shoal) during an Asean meeting expected to come up with a joint statement on the matter.
“China wants to hold Asean by the neck because it has allies in the group. Meanwhile, it also has the Philippines and other members affected by the dispute over the West Philippine Sea,” Santiago noted.
“China does not favor a unified Asean, it would rather that the group become fragmented. That’s why it also insists on talking to other claimants to territories in the area separately. United we stand, divided we fall,” she added.
Chinese state media announced that police in Hainan province would be given authority beginning January 1 to search vessels that pass through the South China Sea.
The announcement came at the heels of protests aired by the Philippines, Vietnam, Taiwan and India over the map on the new Chinese electronic passport that depicts disputed areas as belonging to China.
Manila specifically objected to the inclusion of China’s so-called nine –dash-line claim to virtually all territories in the South China Sea that includes Scarborough Shoal and the Spratly island chain that the Philippines partially claims.
The Philippines and Vietnam have refused to stamp visas on the Chinese e-passports.
Senate foreign relations chair Loren Legarda believes Malacañang’s appointment of a new ambassador to Beijing would help ease tensions between China and the Philippines.
“Having an ambassador or an official representative to help clear issues would help. Also…we should not tolerate that kind of treatment, having them climb aboard our ships for inspection and sending us out of disputed seas,” she said in another radio interview.
“It is a simplistic fact that every employee has some variable economic value to their employer.”
Of course if the employee doesn’t provide some value then they will not be employees for long. (unless they work for government).
However you did not answer the main points of my previous posts.
How do you feel about our trade Policies creating a dangerous superpower rival, while driving down the wages of the Average American.
The Chinese could land troops on Guam. Obama won’t do a damn thing.
Ping.
So trading and off-shoring jobs to a country that uses slave labor does what for freedom?
The Chief of Naval Operations has just released a new order regarding dealing with the Chinese in open waters. The order mandates that when US naval officers stop their ships to allow the Chinese to board that American naval officers are not to bow to the Chinese lower than belt-level, and that apologies to the Chinese are not to be made by any officer above the rank of LT (O-3). Breaking...
Cutting off free trade is a path to World War.
You're joking, right??? Um, just what Navy are you a vet of? PLA? Tell me more about this implicit message of peace and good will. China has had a proxy war against us for decades and sponsor, and aid most of our enemies. They vote against us at every opportunity at the UN. The level of espionage couldn't be any higher. They steal our secrets, bribe our officials and hack our government computers. China's bellicose assertions of control over most of Asia's sea lanes and boarding of ships of sovereign nations is unprecedented. The military buildup in China is in overdrive, funded by "FREE TRADE" The best recipe for world war is to keep feeding this monster that "FREE TRADE" has created. I could feel a little differently about the job loss, etc., were it not for the fact that we are building our future enemy's military at a rate that will soon surpass our own. Is that what you want for your Grandkids? WWIII with an adversary that won't hesitate to slaughter them? Have you ever considered the idea of fair trading with a country that is not grooming itself for war with us? I'm so glad that they feel this good will that you speak of towards us.
Speaking of hell, a friend of mine was in the Army Air Corps ... His POW horror story can be found at http://www.ocregister.com/articles/bowen-328324-airmen-one.html
I don't pretend to have the vast knowledge of what causes war like you do but I would like to learn. Please share your knowledge. Show us what you know but let's use facts, okay? How about we talk about the facts that I listed or cite your own.
Please feel free to address the following:
Was the Revolutionary war started with a trade war?
How about the war of 1812?
Was the Mexican American war precipitated by a trade war?
Was the Civil war brought about by a trade war?
Did we have a trade war with Germany prior to WWI?
Did we have a trade war with Japan prior to WWII?
Did we have a trade war with Germany prior to WWII?
Did we have a trade war with Italy prior to WWII?
Did we have a trade war with Hungary prior to WWII?
Did we have a trade war with Bulgaria prior to WWII?
Did we have a trade war with North Korea?
Did we have a trade war with Viet Nam?
Did we have a trade war with Iraq?
Kosovo?
Did we have a trade war with Afghanistan?
Refresh my memory, what wars have we had that started with trade wars?
Ref. http://itsamoneything.com/money/quotes-on-war/
"Those who beat their swords into plowshares will end up plowing for the ones who didn't."
Oh, look. Another war brewing because of a lack of free trade. /s
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2965734/posts
The seeds of war very much include nations becoming strong enough to forcibly take over nearby territorial areas - destroying free trade. The seeds of war had Germany and Japan doing exactly that in the 1930s.
Thank you. This is my point. China is becoming stronger because of the type of one sided free trade that we are all to happy too give them. China is sowing the seeds of war in every way from provocative and bellicose acts like are mentioned in this article to nuclear ICBMs that the PLA seem all too excited to use on us. China had no problem with murdering 30,000,000 of it’s own people. They use the wealth made from us to arm our enemies. They use their new power to politically enable our enemies. They are disputing the boundaries of most all of their neighbors. We are becoming weaker because of this species of trade with them and this emboldens them even more. If we continue to fuel this process, we are providing powerful fertilizer for these seeds. We are ensuring war because of our trade and that trade will not be the only casualty. You can expect many lives to be lost, American, Chinese and from all the other countries that get sucked into the fracas. It will be a bloody war.
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