Written by Daodaojie Daojianxiao
Washington has started a new round of trouble in the South China Sea .
Shortly after the U.S. "Benford" guided missile destroyer illegally intruded into China's Xisha territorial waters under the banner of "freedom of navigation", the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command made a high-profile announcement that the "Reagan" aircraft carrier strike group had entered the South China Sea for execution. Task.
The timing of these actions is quite subtle. The previous 12 days were the 6th anniversary of the ruling on the so-called South China Sea Discharge Case. The US Secretary of State specifically chose this day to issue a statement to hype up the so-called "ruling", although the relevant statement did not mention "China".
Combined with the ongoing Rim-Pacific military exercises, previously reported Japan may deploy intermediate-range missiles, and South Korea is promoting the normalization of the "THAAD" base, some scholars believe that the Asia-Pacific region has fallen into a "security dilemma." What is the root cause of this "security dilemma" and is it possible to resolve it?
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announced that the "Reagan" aircraft carrier strike group has entered the South China Sea, deepening the signs that the United States is starting a new round of trouble in the South China Sea.
In fact, @南海 strategic situational awareness began to track the trajectory of the "Reagan" on the 9th. This aircraft carrier group just concluded its military exercise in Guam and then sailed westward.
html On the 313th, judging from the flight trajectory of the carrier-based aircraft , the "Reagan" was already operating in the waters south of of the Nansha Islands. The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command issued a press release on the same day saying that during the "Reagan"'s security operations in the South China Sea, it will conduct a series of exercises, including flight operations of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft, maritime strike exercises, and collaborative tactical training of surface and air forces. It doesn’t actually matter what subjects you practice, what matters is the purpose.
U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Michael Donnelly said bluntly that the "Reagan" strike group will continue to focus on how to "always maintain capabilities and combat readiness" during its activities in the South China Sea and "demonstrate its commitment to the region."
The captain of the USS Reagan and Rear Admiral Goldhammer also used the same trick, saying that this operation "demonstrates the United States' commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific." This is the first time this year that the USS Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier group has entered the South China Sea. But it is expected that it may not stay in the South China Sea for too long.
According to BBC and Vietnamese media reports, the "Reagan" will visit Da Nang, Vietnam in late July. This will be the second visit of a US aircraft carrier to Vietnam after two years. Even many US media have noticed the sudden increase in activity of US warships in the South China Sea. On the day the news about the "Reagan" was announced, earlier on the 13th, the US guided-missile destroyer "Benford" had illegally entered China's Xisha territorial waters under the banner of "freedom of navigation." A spokesman for the US Navy's Seventh Fleet said that this was the second "freedom of navigation" operation conducted by the US in the Paracel Islands this year.
In order to pretend to "treat everyone equally," the US military said that the "Benford" not only "challenged" China's maritime claims this time, but also challenged Taiwan and Vietnam. The Southern Theater Command of the People's Liberation Army immediately organized naval and air forces to track and monitor the US ships and warn them to drive away. Tian Junli, spokesman for the Southern Theater Command, solemnly pointed out that the US military’s actions are another ironclad evidence of its pursuit of maritime hegemony and militarization of the South China Sea. Troops in the theater remain on high alert at all times and resolutely safeguard national sovereignty and security and peace and stability in the South China Sea.
The timing of US aircraft carriers and destroyers entering the South China Sea and even violating our sovereignty is also worth pondering.
The day before, on the 12th, the US Secretary of State took advantage of the 6th anniversary of the so-called South China Sea sanctions ruling to issue a statement. On the one hand, it hyped and claimed to support this "ruling", and on the other hand, it "warned" that if Philippine troops encountered in the South China Sea Attack, the United States will "defend the Philippines" in accordance with the mutual defense treaty between the two countries.
China has sufficient historical and legal basis for its sovereignty over the South China Sea Islands. It goes without saying that the so-called "South China Sea Arbitration Award" is illegal and invalid.The damage caused by the "ruling" to China-Philippines relations and peace and stability in the South China Sea was also obvious.
However, Washington does not care about the actual interests of the countries surrounding the South China Sea. It hypes up and exploits the South China Sea disputes to sow discord between China and ASEAN countries, and "reshapes China's surrounding strategic environment" with extreme confrontation and zero-sum game thinking. The United States makes no secret of this.
It is reported that two B2 stealth bombers of the U.S. Air Force landed at Royal Air Force Base Amberley, Australia, on July 10 and began to perform new bomber special operations missions in the "Indo-Pacific". This, together with the intensive operations of the USS Ronald Reagan and the USS Benford in the South China Sea, has verified the US's impulse to further increase its military presence and even "forward confrontation" in the Asia-Pacific region.
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The South China Sea is just one direction for the United States to make trouble in the Asia-Pacific.
The 28th Rim of the Pacific Military Exercise, the world's largest international maritime exercise, is being held. The current Rim-Pacific military exercise, launched on June 29, will last until August 4. This year, more than 25,000 people from 26 countries participated.
A breakdown of the participating countries, including the member states of ORCOS, the member states of the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, and the five countries surrounding the South China Sea... The direction of the military exercise has been very obvious. The U.S. Navy's press release on the "2022 RIM-Pacific Military Exercise" is even more blunt: The purpose of the military exercise is to "prevent and defeat the aggressive behavior of major powers in all fields and stages of conflicts." This is almost a replica of the so-called "Today's Ukraine Tomorrow's Taiwan Strait" rhetoric.
However, in the past few years, NATO had not enough military exercises and deterrence against Russia? These actions only intensified the conflict and eventually reached the point of getting out of hand, but they did not "frighten" anyone.
The Taiwan Navy was not invited to participate in this year's Rim-Pacific military exercise. Commander of the US Pacific Fleet Paparo also said that the purpose of this military exercise is not to confront or threaten China. Saying one thing and doing another is a common practice in Washington.
Even during the Cold War, Rim-Pacific military exercises rarely named the Soviet Union directly. Moreover, this year Paparo also made it clear that this year's military exercise is aimed at the situation in the Taiwan Strait in 2027. "If a conflict does break out in the Taiwan Strait, the United States will be prepared to deal with the worst possibility." The Rim-Pacific military exercise has obviously changed its flavor and has become a strategic tool of the United States.
In addition to the "military exercise show", the United States is also trying to start a new round of arms race in the Asia-Pacific region. For example, since last year, the United States has tried its best to induce and pressure the Japanese government to strengthen the "integrated deterrence" of the " first island chain" against China, that is, the deployment of intermediate-range missile (medium-range ballistic missile) troops on Japan's southwestern islands.
The Kishida government has not yet publicly made a final decision on this, but the Japan Self-Defense Force has substantially begun preliminary preparations for the deployment of intermediate-range missiles.
At the end of last year, US Indo-Pacific Commander-in-Chief Aquilino inspected the readiness of military bases on Japan’s southwestern islands. In January this year, the Japan-U.S. joint statement stated that the U.S. military and the Japanese Self-Defense Forces will gradually strengthen the shared use of military facilities on the Southwest Islands.
In addition, Washington has been "urging" South Korea to promote the normalization of the "THAAD" base as soon as possible.
Currently, the "THAAD" base is in a temporary (field) deployment state.
Nowadays, the base environmental impact assessment work has been put on the agenda. This is an important signal that the Yin Xiyue government will continue to push forward the deployment of " THAAD ". After the environmental impact assessment of the base is completed, the next logical step is probably to restore the normal operation of the THAAD base.
Such as the Rim-Pacific military exercises and the deployment of the intermediate-range missile "THAAD", etc., are all important components of the US strategic shift eastward. There is only one ultimate goal, and that is to support and maintain the United States' absolute dominance in the Asia-Pacific and even the world.
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However, the consequence of the above series of actions by Washington is that the Asia-Pacific region seems to have fallen into a "security dilemma."
Because when the United States strengthens its own security, it will inevitably cause other related countries to feel insecure, and they will react and respond. In turn, the latter move will once again arouse the insecurity of the United States and its allies, which will then lead to the deployment of military weapons... This will be a terrible vicious circle.
Professor Jin Canrong of the School of International Relations at Renmin University of China pointed out that it is the US mentality of seeking "absolute security" that has caused the current "security dilemma" in the Asia-Pacific region. After the disintegration of the Soviet Union , the United States had a brief period that was close to achieving the "absolute security" it wanted. After China's military power has grown in recent years, the United States believed that this situation undermined the "absolute security" it wanted. Safety".
When the United States discovered that it could not "do whatever it wanted" to China, but was unwilling to accept "relative security," its mentality became increasingly unbalanced and its sense of security continued to be lost.
Washington does not understand that the "absolute security" it seeks has never existed. "Security" is only a relative concept, and Washington already has "relative security." Because the purpose of China's development of military power is only to maintain its own security, not to threaten anyone. There is no so-called "security dilemma" between China and the United States.
In the final analysis, Washington needs to change its mentality of pursuing "absolute security." The "absolute security" it pursues will only bring absolute "insecurity" to other countries and will only plant serious security risks for the security of relevant regions.
However, Jin Canrong also mentioned that it is unlikely to see significant changes in this regard in the United States in the short term. We still need to insist on doing our own things well, and do a good job in regional cooperation and economic cooperation, so as to resolve the provocations and provocations of the United States through cooperation. pictures come from the Internet
