Literally. On Thursday, China announced that it had sent a small, manned submarine to the floor of the South China Sea and planted a Chinese flag there.
According to Reuters, the sub achieved the feat during one of its 17 dives between May and July, with the craft apparently reaching a depth of more than 12,000 feet -- a first for a Chinese submersible vehicle apparently.
Two interesting questions arise. The first is why the government delayed announcing the dives until a month after they were completed? The second question is why it would try such a stunt when tensions in the area are so high.
China was indignant when US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said at a regional security forum in Hanoi last month that the United States had an interest in seeing the various disputes between China and other South-east Asian nations resolved peacefully. China saw this as interference, especially as it has laid claim to most of the South China Sea as a 'core interest' -- language that had been reserved for Tibet and Taiwan.
China has preferred to handle these issues bilaterally rather than through regional groupings such as ASEAN, as this allows it to exert greater pressure on individual nations. But if it's concerned by the US inserting itself into the disuputes then it seems a little counter-productive to pull stunts that suggest you have no intention anyway of negotiating in good faith.
Of course by planting the flag, China isn't making any claim it hadn't done already. But it's an insensitive move at a delicate juncture.
I guess it must have seemed like a good idea when it was dreamt up...
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Peter C
Just remember, it is South China sea not European sea. No need for any justification, just like the European who went to America and kill all the Natives and Tried in Africa and Australia. Did they ask for permission? Now they own it. Keep it going and Humanity will be doomed. Wakeup you all silly kids! We should be pass this absurd Tetestorone behaviour and work for Humanity. Idiots!!
Alex T.
Typical Chinese… actions are increasingly showing Nazi overtones. Chinese relations with all its neighbors are similar to what Germany had with rest of Europe. Germany had Italy and China has Pakistan !
Nef
>Chinese relations with all its neighbors are similar to what Germany had with rest of Europe.
Well, that’s a stunning exaggeration. While China still has some issues to resolve with many of its neighbours (India being chief among these), relations have generally been trending towards the positive. The peaceful resolution of the China-Russia border dispute serves as a good example of this, as does improved relations with Taiwan and Japan.
danny
It’s funny when people are mistaken South “China” Sea belong to China because of the “China” word. It sounds like Indian Ocean belongs to Inida.
Trai Tim Viet
Remember that, the South China Sea is itself name only and it has never been belonging to China. China occupied islets in the Sea by making several bloody war with Vietnam etc, so, China has no clear evidence to prove itself to has right to sovereign whole the Sea.
Loic
US should advocate bilateral military ties with Indonesia, they are a lynch pin in world economy and developing power who would share the East Asian community’s anxiety over Beijing belligerent behavior. A stronger Indonesian and Vietnamese Navy would be able to put this situation’s grave implications in proper context.
hoang
So here it goes: The Red Sea belongs to the red skin people, the Black Sea belongs to the black, and the Dead Sea belongs to the dead :)