ChiCom news agency says China "will take any necessary measures" to defend sovereignty in South China Sea
Wednesday, 22 April 2020
First up here is the official Communist Chinese news agency's claim.
(NB China refers to the Paracel Islands as Xisha and Spratly as Nansha)
Xisha Island and Nansha Island are parts of China, and any attempts to deny China's sovereignty and rights in the South China Sea are invalid and doomed to fail, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday.
Since March, the Permanent Mission of Vietnam to the UN has submitted notes reiterating its sovereignty over the Xisha and Nansha Islands and denying China's sovereignty and rights in the South China Sea. China firmly opposes this and has made solemn representations to Vietnam, Geng Shuang, spokesperson for the ministry, told a regular press conference.
The response was made after Vietnam made "illegal claims" to the UN, accusing China of infringing on its "sovereignty and jurisdiction rights" over the South China Sea. The Southeast Asian country also protested against China's establishment of two districts, Xisha District and Nansha District, in Sansha City, South China's Hainan Province, in the name of the sovereignty concerns, on Sunday.
China claims sovereignty and jurisdiction rights in relevant parts of the South China Sea in accordance with international laws that include the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea, and the Xisha and Nansha islands are inherent parts of China, Geng said.
"China will take any necessary measures to defend its sovereignty, rights and interests in the South China Sea," he said.
ENDS
That is very significant.
- China is overtly asserting its "sovereignty, rights and interests" in the South China Sea, specifically the Paracel and Spratly Islands.
- China is threatening war, "China will take any necessary measures".
- The US presence in the region is diminished with considerable publicity given to the Coronavirus hitting the USS Theodore Roosevelt aircraft carrier's crew.
- US Air Force operations through Guam have also been curtailed due to the virus.
Related
The UK's Express newspaper reported in the past few hours:
China makes ever larger claim in South China Sea in ambitious move that will infuriate US
CHINA has approved an ambitious new land grab as it looks to fortify its claims to several islands chains in the South China Sea.
Approved by China State Council, Beijing has approved two new administrative centres in the South China Sea. Laying in the disputed Paracel and Spratly Islands, the move has come as the US has been forced to withdraw a navy vessel from the region amid the current coronavirus pandemic. Due to a coronavirus outbreak, the USS Roosevelt was forced to withdraw from the region while the air force ceased its 15-year presence over Guam.
On April 18 the Paracel (Xisha) and Spratly Islands (Nansha) were put under official control by China in a move which could spark tensions with neighbouring countries in the region.
Sansha City, within the Paracel’s will control both districts in a move which extends Beijing’s territorial claims by two million kilometres.
Zhang Junshe, a researcher at the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Naval Military Studies Research Institute, told the state-affiliated Global Times said: “Eight years after China set Sansha as a city-level administrative unit, it is now time to subdivide it with different districts to further fulfil the responsibility of safeguarding our national sovereignty.”
Song Zhongping also said: “As a city that administers the largest territory among Chinese cities, it is also responsible for managing islands, isles and waters – work that is complicated and sensitive.
“The newly established districts will help detail the current administrative work in the area and build Sansha into a better city.”
ENDS