US won’t dare challenge Chinese military in South China Sea: American researcher

The United States will never dare to challenge the might of the Chinese military in the South China Sea for fear of the consequences, an American researcher says.

“US Defense Secretary Ashton Carter's comments are all bluster and bravado,” said Dennis Etler, a professor of Anthropology at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California.

He made the remarks on Wednesday when asked to comment on Carter’s statement that the US military forces will be present in the South China Sea like other international waters.

“Make no mistake, the United States will fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows, as we do around the world, and the South China Sea will not be an exception,” Carter said on Tuesday.

Commenting to Press TV, Etler said, “China has never threatened to block access to the South China Sea or to impede navigation through the region.

“Chinese leaders have said time and time again that they respect the law of the seas and want to ensure that shipping lanes are open to all.

“They also have never directly challenged other nation's possession of territory in the South China Sea although they dispute their sovereignty.

“They have pledged not to militarily intervene in these disputes but to negotiate mutually agreeable solutions.

“It is the US that wants to roil the waters and inflame tensions falsely accusing China of aggression.

“Prior to the US declared ‘pivot to Asia’ China did not see the need to reinforce its claims in the South China Sea, but once the US made it clear that they would challenge China in its own backyard China responded in order to protect its own vital national interests, just as the US has done time and again in the Caribbean Sea and wherever else it is deemed essential for its own national security.  

“The potential crisis in the South China Sea is thus all of the USA's own making and is meant to disrupt the status quo so it can fish in troubled waters and try to keep China guessing as to US intentions.

“It will all be to no avail. China has been resolute in both its words and actions and will never retreat from its position. So Carter's words are mere bluff.

“China will not intervene with US naval maneuvers in the South China Sea if they are outside the 12 mile limit, so for Carter to say ‘Make no mistake, the United States will fly, sail and operate wherever international law allows, as we do around the world, and the South China Sea will not be an exception,’ is blowing hot air, a lot of sound and fury, signifying nothing.

“He then goes on to equivocate and say that the US will challenge the 12-nautical-mile limits of Chinese islands built on reefs in the Nansha/Spratly archipelago ‘in the time and places of our choosing.’ Which is simply an idle threat.

“The US will never dare to venture into Chinese territorial waters around their outposts for fear of the consequences, so Carter's brazen trumpeting is mere political rhetoric and posturing.

“The whole episode shows the US to be on the defensive throughout the world and in need of ‘tough talk’ to cover its losses.”

Washington has sided with China’s rivals in the territorial dispute, with Beijing accusing the US of meddling in the regional issues and deliberately stirring up tensions in the South China Sea.

China claims sovereignty over almost the whole of the South China Sea, which is also claimed in part by Taiwan, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. The waters are believed to sit atop vast reserves of oil and gas.

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