BY YOICHI KATO ASAHI SHIMBUN SENIOR STAFF WRITER
PEARL HARBOR, Hawaii--Repeated Chinese navy helicopter flights
close to Japan's Self-Defense Force ships in the East China Sea and
the Western Pacific in April were neither professional nor
responsible, says the commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, Adm.
Patrick Walsh.
Walsh, in a recent interview with The Asahi Shimbun at fleet
headquarters in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, where a Japanese training
squadron was visiting, went on: "It raised the concerns of all of
us who use the Pacific."
Walsh expressed concern about China's increasingly aggressive
behavior in the South China Sea.
He pointed out that in 2009 alone, China detained 433 Vietnamese
fishermen who were working in waters where the territorial claims
of both countries overlap.
He also said that China recently started describing the South
China Sea as its "core interest." It is a term that China uses to
explain its positions vis-a-vis Taiwan and Tibet.
"This is an issue that has us very, very concerned because, on
principle, the interference with freedom of navigation in
international water is a core interest for those who use the global
commons," Walsh said.
"At the same time, this economic 'carotid artery' that runs
through the South China Sea ... they are willing to put at risk
over rocks, reefs and disputed claims."
While the United States has been trying to maintain a mature
relationship with China in the economic sphere, he said, "the
military representation of the People's Republic of China is one
where we just lag any kind of mature relationship, and it's just
fraught with the potential for misunderstanding."
Secretary of Defense Robert Gates' request to visit China was
recently rebuffed by China. The Chinese explanation was "it is not
convenient," according to a source familiar with the exchange.
In reaction to China's disturbing behavior in the South
China Sea, several littoral states such as Vietnam and Singapore are now purchasing
submarines "as a way of protecting sovereign rights," Walsh
said.
He stopped short of characterizing the situation as "an arms
race."
However, he said, "This is a representation of a growing problem
in the region ... ."
Since he assumed his current position last year, Walsh has
visited South China Sea littoral nations, among them Vietnam,
Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia.
"These are countries that are interested in a closer
relationship with our navy, and I intend to follow up on it," Walsh
said.
As for the relationship between what is happening in the South
China Sea and in waters closer to Japan, the admiral said, "I do
think it's a broader sort of set of issues here, in terms of how
the Chinese, the People's Liberation Army, represent themselves,
beyond their territorial waters."
He emphasized his view that all these activities by China should
be seen as interconnected and as having the same strategic
objective.
When asked how much of an actual threat China's anti-ship
ballistic missiles (ASBMs) pose to the U.S. Navy, he did not answer
directly, saying only, "I think it represents a continued
advancement and maturing of technology."
He added: "If you remember, there were many, several years ago,
who were critical of the missile defense program. Now we find the
missile defense program as being something that's essential to our
ability to operate freely."
Walsh seemed to imply that China's ASBM program, while not
completed, is steadily moving toward deployment.
ASBMs are considered one of the major weapon systems along with
submarines that could enable China to have what the United States
calls "anti-access/area-denial" capabilities, which can prevent the
U.S Navy from freely navigating and operating in the Western
Pacific.
http://www.asahi.com/english/TKY201006140534.html