China conducted a naval drill in the South China Sea days after Beijing accused the United States of stirring up trouble in the disputed waterway. The People’s Liberation Army drill coincided with China’s National Day on October 1st, followed an exercise involving the US, the Philippines, Australia, Japan, and New Zealand that began on Saturday.
“As part of its annual military training arrangement, the PLA Southern Theatre Command organised a flotilla to carry out combat-ready cruises from September 30 to October 1 in relevant areas in the South China Sea,” the Southern Theatre Command said.
“The purpose is to raise our joint operation capability, and demonstrate our resolve in safeguarding peace and stability in the South China Sea area.” It did not say what ships were involved or give details about the location.
The PLA also conducted a drill around Scarborough Shoal in an area Manila claims as part of its exclusive economic zone (EEZ) on Friday, hours after the five nations’ joint operation began.
The Philippines said the five-nation exercise was intended to demonstrate their “collective commitment to strengthen regional and international cooperation in support of a free and open Indo-Pacific and enhance cooperation and interoperability”.
Last week Foreign Minister of China Wang Yi met the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in New York on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly, where he said the US should stick to its promise of seeking stable relations with Beijing.
“The United States should not stir up trouble in the South China Sea, or undermine regional countries’ efforts to safeguard peace and stability there,” Wang said.
China claims most of the South China Sea, but the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Brunei also have competing claims over the resource-rich waterway. In recent years, Manila has become more assertive in countering Beijing’s territorial claims, leading to repeated clashes between the two countries’ navies and coastguards in recent months. The US, a long-standing ally of the Philippines, has expressed opposition to China’s claims and conducts regular freedom of navigation operations.
Team BharatShakti (With inputs from Reuters)
