Vous êtes sur la page 1sur 6

Chinese military sets course to expand

global reach as national interests grow

Chinese dredging vessels are purportedly seen in waters around Mischief Reef in the
disputed Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, in a photo taken by a P-8A Poseidon
surveillance aircraft this month. (Handout/Reuters)

By Simon Denyer-May 26

BEIJING China said Tuesday that it plans to extend its global military reach to
safeguard its economic interests, while defending its territorial claims at sea against
provocative actions by neighbors and meddling by the United States.
A policy document setting out Chinas military strategy, issued by the State Council, or
cabinet, underlined the dramatic growth of the countrys defense ambitions
especially its naval ambitions in tandem with its rapid economic rise.
Beijing insisted in the document that its military is dedicated to international security
cooperation and peaceful development. But it also said the navy will expand its focus
from offshore waters defense to a greater emphasis on open seas protection as
China aims to establish itself as a maritime power. The air force, meanwhile, will shift

its focus from territorial air defense to both defense and offense.
Patrick Cronin, director of the Asia-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New
American Security, called the white paper a blueprint for achieving slow-motion
regional hegemony.
It asserts a confidence backed by growing capability on land and increasingly at sea,
he said. While it calls for balancing Chinas territorial rights with stability, there
should be little doubt on the part of its neighbors that China is building a maritime
force to assert the former.

Chinas officially disclosed defense budget was expanded by just over 10 percent this
year, to $141 billion, marking two decades of nearly unbroken double-digit growth. The
navy is reportedly building a second aircraft carrier and has invested heavily in
submarines and warships.
China has made it a strategic goal to become a maritime power, Senior Col. Wang Jin
said at a news conference Tuesday. Therefore, we need to build a strong navy.
He added that the development of long-range precision weapons means that the
battlefield at sea is widening. Offshore-waters defense alone can no longer provide
effective defense of the countrys maritime interests, he said.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke said the administration was
aware of the paper and continued to monitor Chinas military developments carefully.
We also continue to urge China to exhibit greater transparency with respect to its
capabilities and to its intentions, he said.

According to a Pentagon report released this month, China is developing missiles


designed to push adversary forces including the United States farther from
potential regional conflicts.
The Chinese military is mainly focused on readying for possible conflict in the Taiwan
Strait but also is investing to prepare for contingencies in the East China Sea and the
South China Sea, where it is engaged in several territorial disputes, the Pentagon
report said.
Chinese officials say that the countrys declared annual defense spending is
significantly below the global average when compared with the size of its economy. Its
actual defense spending is almost certainly higher than the declared number but is still
far lower than the Pentagons fiscal 2015 budgetof $560 billion, experts say.

Object 1

The U.S. Navy released this video showing flight operations aboard a P-8A
Poseidon over the South China Sea on May 20, 2015. During the flight, the
crew documented several warnings issued by Chinas navy to leave the
area. (U.S. Navy)
In a move welcomed by other nations, China sent a 700-strong peacekeeping force in
December to South Sudan, where it has extensive oil interests, marking the first time it
has sent an infantry battalion on a U.N. mission.
Beijing also is negotiating with the strategic port nation of Djibouti to open a military
base there to support anti-piracy naval escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and off the
coast of Somalia, the Agence France-Presse news agencyreported this month. The
United States and France already have a military presence in the tiny Horn of Africa
country.

[Mapping Asias Chinese fears]


With the growth of Chinas national interests, the security of our overseas energy and
resources, strategic sea lines of communication and the safety of our overseas
institutions, personnel and assets have become prominent issues, Senior Col. Zhang
Yuguo said at Tuesdays news conference.
Zhang added, however, a note of outreach apparently aimed at the United States and
other countries watching Chinas military growth. China will never seek hegemony or
divide up spheres of power, nor will it engage in military alliances or expansion, he
said.
In addition to rattling its neighbors, Chinas military growth has set the nation on a
possible collision course with the United States.
This year in particular, the Obama administration has repeatedly condemned a
program of rapid land reclamation and construction on disputed islands and reefs in
the South China Sea. A U.S. surveillance plane was warned to leave the area by the
Chinese navy last week, while Beijing lodged a formaldiplomatic complaint .
Senior Col. Yang Yujun, a Defense Ministry spokesman, on Tuesday likened Chinas
construction activities on the islands to everyday actions such as the building of
houses, roads and bridges. But he acknowledged that the facilities being constructed,
including an airstrip and radar stations, will have both military and civilian uses.
[Chinese warships could one day outnumber U.S. fleet]
Rathke, the State Department spokesman, said the United States took a different view,
saying that Chinas land reclamation efforts in the South China Sea have
contributed ... to rising tensions and suggesting that other countries in the region
share that view.
Yang said that the Chinese military was responding to increasingly frequent
surveillance flights in a legal and professional manner but that the issue was being
hyped up to throw mud at China.
Theres no ruling out the possibility that some country is seeking an excuse for its
potential action in the future, he said. I dont think this is a new trick. Its an old
trick.
On Monday, the state-owned tabloid the Global Times warned that war is inevitable
if the United States tries to prevent China from finishing its reclamation and
construction work. It said the risks would be still under control if Washington

accepts Chinas peaceful rise.


Although not necessarily fully reflecting official thinking, the editorial shows Chinas
determination to continue its projects in the South China Sea.
Yang said Sino-U.S. relations are generally good and noted that both militaries have
signed agreements to govern air and maritime encounters and prevent crises.
But the policy paper expressed concern about the United States rebalancing
strategy, which has led China to enhance its military presence and strengthen military
alliances in the Asia-Pacific region and worry about more assertive military and
security policies in Japan. It accused Chinas neighbors of provocative actions by
reinforcing their military presence on Chinas reefs and islands that they have illegally
occupied.
Some external countries are also busy meddling in South China Sea affairs, it said,
adding in a clear reference to the United States: A tiny few maintain constant close-in
air and sea surveillance and reconnaissance against China.
Philippines President Benigno Aquino III was quoted as saying Monday that his nation
will continue flying over disputed islands in the South China Sea, while Defense
Minister Voltaire Gazmin said he was seeking a stronger commitment from the
United States to help its ally, according to news agency reports.
China responded angrily.
I would like to remind the Philippines that China will not bully small countries, but
small countries must not ceaselessly and willfully make trouble, Foreign Ministry
spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a news conference. We hope the Philippines can
cease its instigation and provocation and return to the correct path of resolving the
problem through negotiation and consultation.
On Tuesday, state media reported that China had held a groundbreaking ceremony for
the building of two lighthouses on the disputed Spratly Islands, a move that Hua said
was meant to fulfill the nations international obligations but that is unlikely to ease
concerns about Beijings expanding influence.
The military strategy paper also outlined threats emanating from instability on the
Korean peninsula, from separatist forces in its western regions of Tibet and Xinjiang
and from forces attempting to instigate a color revolution to overthrow the
Communist Party.
It also noted growing threats in outer space and cyberspace.

Xu Yangjingjing in Beijing and Dan Lamothe in Washington contributed to this


report.
China deletes online reports that it is building a second aircraft carrier
Chinese warnings to U.S. plane hint of rising stakes over disputed islands
Today's coverage from Post correspondents around the world

Simon Denyer is The Posts bureau chief


in China. He served previously as
bureau chief in India and as a Reuters
bureau chief in Washington, India and
Pakistan.

Posted by Thavam

Vous aimerez peut-être aussi