South China Sea: China’s unprecedented dangerous step

China deploys naval warships rather than territorial waters or civil law enforcement to harass civilian ships of other countries.

Philippine media recently reported that on April 8, two Chinese Navy’s Houbei-class fast attack ships carrying Type 22 missile (China) harassed a civilian ship carrying Filipino reporters traveling in the Sea. Bronze. The Philippines said it was conducting an investigation.

On this issue, comment with the newspaper Law of Ho Chi Minh City, MSc Nguyen The Phuong, lecturer in the Department of International Relations at the University of Economics and Finance – East Sea scholar, worries that if this is true, this will be an unprecedented development.

There is no precedent as this appears to be the first time that there is clear evidence that China has deployed naval warships, not territorial waters or civil law enforcement to harass its civilian ships. other countries. Some international scholars argue that the argument Beijing uses civilian law enforcement to “maintain peace and stability” in the South China Sea seems to be shaken after the above events.

Fast attack ship carrying Type 22 Houbei class missile of the Chinese navy. Photo: ASIA TIMES

“The continuous presence of Chinese ships around Ba Dau Rock is the cause of regional tensions” – Philippines Foreign Ministry.

Variation from “cabbage strategy”

In recent years, after all of China’s various maritime law enforcement forces have been reorganized and unified to become a single force (i.e., seascape), there have been internal debates about the challenges. consciousness faced by the Chinese maritime forces in the process of defending its sovereignty over the sea.

One of those challenges comes from the fact that China’s maritime landscape often faces the navies of other countries. And this puts them at a disadvantage. That is precisely why China has quickly passed a maritime law, allowing its ships to use force in disputed areas. Another measure is a call for the Chinese navy to increase its support, amid increasing confrontations between the seas and navies of other countries.

In May 2018, a joint patrol took place between the Chinese navy, coast guard and marine militia in Hoang Sa. This event helps China’s maritime law enforcement forces test their coordination and readiness to respond to unexpected situations at sea. According to the narrative’s Xinhua News Agency it was the first such a mixed patrol. According to the proposed scenario, if the patrol detects a foreign warship, the navy ship will actively respond to the pursuit. If it is a foreign coast guard ship, the ship of the police will assume the primary responsibility. If it is a foreign fishing vessel, the militia will be the party responsible for the pursuit.

South China Sea security analysts have long been all too familiar with the concept of “cabbage strategy”, with China implementing three layers of sovereignty protection. Chinese policymakers still favor forces such as the seascape or militia over their efforts to control the South China Sea. Mainly because these forces both ensure to help China control the field and avoid escalating conflicts. The PLAN is used primarily for deterrent elements against the United States or other major powers, when it deploys its navy for missions in the South China Sea. Now, however, it appears that China has begun to recognize the vital role the navy plays in routine coordinated patrol missions in disputed areas.

Philippines react

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The Philippines has deployed four naval vessels patrolling the South China Sea, concentrating places where Chinese ships are currently illegally present, the report said. Bloomberg guide the April 12 announcement of the national task force of the West Philippine Sea.

Accordingly, ships were deployed to support coast guard forces and fishing boats in the Ba Dau rock area, Co Rong (all of Vietnam’s Spratly Islands), which the Philippines, China, and Taiwan are disputing. illegal) as well as some other areas in the Spratly Islands. According to Philippine Foreign Minister Teodoro Locsin Jr, on April 13, there are still nine Chinese ships in the area near Ba Dau rock.

Dangerous precedent

The past harassment event will not be an isolated one. In the future, such events will inevitably take place more, so the tension and the risk of confrontation will increase. States that have disputes with China in the South China Sea will obviously have to be vigilant.

In terms of resources, no country in Southeast Asia can be on par with China. Their maritime security capacities are often in short supply and resources are allocated completely unevenly. The navy is regularly invested, while civilian law enforcement is not. This means that in most cases the navy will be the front line. That is not to mention the difficulties in implementing coordination between law enforcement forces with each other within the same country, as well as between the disputing states.

In response to China’s increasingly complex gray-zone tactics, Southeast Asian states may need a holistic approach, in which capacity building for maritime security forces is one. constitutes important. Strengthening the ability to combine joint ventures, building appropriate maritime legislation, building professional operating regulations and general rules when confronted should be the first steps.

MSc Nguyen The Phuong – Lecturer of the Faculty of International Relations at the University of Economics and Finance
THS