If there is one thing the United States is losing sleep over, it’s China’s growing assertiveness in South China Sea. Beijing recently said that it would shift its focus from defensive capabilities to building offensive capabilities. The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) issued a new white paper last month, making it clear that China will use force beyond its borders to “safeguard its maritime possessions.”
U.S., Vietnam sign vision statement with eye on China
China is aggressively building artificial islands in the disputed Spratly area. Recent satellite images show that the construction includes runways and port facilities that could harbor military planes and warships. The looming China threat is bringing wartime adversaries United States and Vietnam closer.
U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter met his Vietnamese counterpart Phung Quang over the weekend. They signed a “joint vision statement” to expand defense cooperation and collaborate on maritime security. Carter also pledged $18 million to help Vietnam purchase two Metal Shark patrol boats. China claims almost all of the South China Sea, including islands claimed by Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan and others
Some in Vietnam still skeptical of the U.S.
Carter also visited the naval base in Haiphong, where he toured a patrol boat that was rammed and ruined by a Chinese ship last year during a confrontation in waters claimed by Vietnam. Some members of the Vietnamese Politburo are still skeptical of the country’s complete turnaround as they still consider the United States an enemy.
Last year, China-Vietnam relations hit a new low when Beijing started drilling an oil rig in waters near the disputed Paracel Islands in South China Sea. Some experts believe that tensions in South China Sea could lead to a direct Sino-U.S. showdown. But Washington is seeking to build a “regional architecture” with economic and military dimensions, according to Bloomberg.
Carter will travel to India on Tuesday to renew the U.S.-India Defense Framework that will open up the relationship “to everything from maritime security to aircraft carrier and jet engines technology cooperation,” he said.
