Hague decision on South China Sea puts US and China on collision course

Yun Tang says the tribunal’s ruling may be a turning point in US relations with China, and the two sides must exercise restraint and work together to prevent current tensions in the South China Sea from boiling over

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US fighter planes fly above the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS John C. Stennis in the Philippine Sea. Two US aircraft carriers have started exercises in the area, defence officials said on June 19, as Washington's ally Manila faces growing pressure from Beijing in the South China Sea. Photo: AFP

Published: 5:11pm, 13 Jul 2016Updated: 7:41pm, 13 Jul 2016

The Hague-based Permanent Court of Arbitration on Tuesday ruled on the Philippine case against China, rejecting Beijing’s maritime territorial claims to the South China Sea. Global attention is now on how the repercussions of this decision will affect the all-important US-China relations.

The US and China differ fundamentally over the South China Sea, known for its vital transportation lanes, rich resources and strategic value. Beijing wants to claim back territories in which its sovereignty has long been trampled by others. But Washington does not recognise Beijing’s territorial claims, instead viewing all Chinese maritime activities as lawless provocations.

To buttress its military ally the Philippines, the Pentagon sent two aircraft carriers to the South China Sea before the verdict. And three US destroyers have recently been patrolling near Chinese-held reefs and islands in the Spratly Islands and around Scarborough Shoal, an atoll close to the Philippine navy base at Subic Bay.

On the other hand, China acted fiercely in the run-up to the verdict by conducting seven days of military drills around the Paracel Islands. Chinese diplomats called the arbitration a “political farce” and said that China would not be intimidated “even if the US sent all 10 aircraft carriers to the South China Sea.”

Chinese missile frigate Yuncheng launches an anti-ship missile during a military exercise in waters near the Paracel Islands, which are controlled by Beijing but also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan. China's navy is holding a week of military drills around the disputed islands. Photo: AP

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The verdict undoubtedly strengthens the US position on the dispute. More importantly, the arbitration provides Washington with an opportunity to realise an underlying strategic goal of its “pivot to Asia” policy: to use the “first island chain” to block China’s increasing naval power from reaching into the Pacific.