US Wants Japan to Patrol South China Sea
Admiral Robert Thomas, senior U.S. Navy officer and commander of the Seventh Fleet and the top U.S. navy officer in Asia, has told Reuters that the United States would welcome operations conducted by the Japanese Self-Defense Forces in the South China Sea. The comments are in line with broader U.S. support for Japan’s military playing a more global role.
US would back any moves by Japan to extend air patrols into the South China Sea as a counterweight to a growing fleet of Chinese vessels pushing Beijing's territorial claims in the region.
Japanese aircraft patrols now covers up to East China Sea, where Tokyo is at loggerheads with Beijing over disputed islands.
If Japan extends it surveillance flights into the South China Sea will almost certainly increase tensions between the world's second- and third-largest economies.
Admiral Robert Thomas, commander of the Seventh Fleet and the top U.S. navy officer in Asia said that allies, partners and friends in the region will look to the Japanese more and more as a stabilizing function. He said that the Chinese fishing fleet, the Chinese coast guard and the (navy) overmatch their neighbours in the South China Sea.
Meanwhile, China, which regards the US as biased on maritime territorial disputes in the South and East China seas, has urged the US to say and do more to help strengthen mutual trust and cooperation among countries in the region.
Foreign Ministry spokeswoman HuaChunying made pointed remarks in Beijing on Tuesday when asked to comment on President Barack Obama's words in New Delhi expressing his concerns over the freedom of navigation in Asia Pacific waters.
Hua said China is active in advocating, promoting and contributing to peace and stability in the region. "We maintain that disputes in the South China Sea should be peacefully revolved through dialogue and consultation between countries directly concerned," she said.
US officials are concerned that Beijing’s buildup in South China Sea will undermine the regional status quo as Washington seeks to increase its presence in Asia in a bid to counter China’s influence.
"They’re reclaiming land in shoals and rocks in sensitive areas whose sovereignty is contested," Assistant Secretary of State Daniel R. Russel said last week.
