Tensions Rising In South China Sea

China's Aggression in the South China Sea

• As protesters gathered outside the Chinese Embassy on April 10 in Manila, to express their outrage at China's naval aggression, U.S. and Filipino troops conducted a joint military exercise in the South China Sea, aimed at preparing the Philippines to "deal with any potential island invasion."
  
  
• Any such shift on the part of Manila towards Moscow should cause Washington to step up its engagement with the Philippines, to prevent Chinese and Russian attempts at controlling the South China Sea's rich resources and China possibly seizing it as a maritime chokepoint.
  
  
  
  

Increased Chinese encroachment on the Spratly Islands -- and a recent "goodwill visit" of Russian Navy ships to the Philippines -- should be cause for alarm in Washington.

In recent years, Beijing-Manila relations improved to the point where Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte and Chinese President Xi Jinping signed 29 cooperation agreements, including a memorandum of understanding on joint oil and gas development in the South China Sea.

In response to criticism in the Philippines over what was viewed as Duterte's dangerous appeasement of Beijing -- which historically has failed to respect Manila's claimed maritime borders or its claimed rights to the South China Sea's valuable resources -- Duterte justified his position on the grounds that "China is [in the South China Sea]... that is the reality, and America and everybody should realize that they are there."

The sighting of the Chinese vessels near Thitu, however, concerned even Duterte, who told Beijing to "lay off" the island, yet stopped short of threatening military action.

This is where the United States and Russia come into play.

As protesters gathered outside the Chinese Embassy on April 10 in Manila, to express their outrage at China's naval aggression, U.S. and Filipino troopsconducted a joint military exercise in the South China Sea, partly aimed at preparing the Philippines to "deal with any potential island invasion." According to Channel News Asia:

Two days earlier, two Russian destroyers and a tanker -- classified by the Russian Navy as "large, anti-submarine ships" -- docked in the Philippines; it was the second Russian Navy visit to the Philippines this year. The first visit was in January, the same month that Philippines Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana announced that Manila should "revisit" its Mutual Defense Treaty with the U.S.