East Sea becomes the focus of Shangri-La Dialogue 2015

(Baonghean) - On May 29, the 14th Asia Security Summit (Shangri-La Dialogue) officially opened. New questions raised at the Conference on the issue of sovereignty over islands in the Pacific Ocean or the migration crisis in Southeast Asia are attracting the attention of many readers. Nghe An Newspaper reporter had a conversation with Major General, Associate Professor, Doctor Le Van Cuong - former Director of the Institute for Strategic Studies, Ministry of Public Security.

China's illegal construction activities on Gac Ma Island in Vietnam's Truong Sa archipelago. Photo: EPA

Reporter:Major General, could you please tell us about the differences between the international and regional security and political context in which the Shangri-La Dialogue 2015 takes place compared to the Dialogue in 2014 or 2013?

Major General Le Van Cuong:Each year, the Shangri-La Dialogue has a theme, a hot spot depending on the international and regional context at that time. For example, in 2013, the theme of the dialogue was “Building strategic trust”, in the context of the relationship between countries in the world and in the region at that time had not really been built on the foundation of trust and mutual understanding. In 2014, the event of China towing the HD 981 drilling rig into Vietnam’s exclusive economic zone was the hot spot of the Conference. This year, there are some new points as follows:

First, the East Sea continues to heat up with China's reclamation of reefs and increasingly strong reactions from international public opinion.

Second, the correlation of relations between powers in and outside the region has changed a lot compared to 2014. Due to being “stuck” with the Ukraine crisis and the broken relationship with Russia; the fight against IS and Islamic terrorist organizations in the Middle East, the role and presence of the US in Asia - Pacific in 2014 was not really clear. So in 2015, improving relations with Russia helped the US gradually return to the strategy of pivoting to Asia and strengthening its role in this region.

It is impossible not to mention Japan, a regional and world power. Most recently, a draft amendment to the Peace Constitution allowing Japan to actively engage in war outside of its territory was submitted to the National Assembly, opening up the possibility of important changes in the regional security and political situation. At the same time, Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is also actively "weaving" a network of partnerships with countries across continents such as the US, India, Australia, etc. In particular, the alliance between Japan and the US has been raised to a new level, creating a new counterweight to regional and world powers.

In short, it can be said that this year's security-political landscape has reversed: the Atlantic has calmed down while the Eastern Pacific has heated up. This difference has led to the emergence of new topics of discussion at the Dialogue.

Reporter:What are those new topics, General?

Major General Le Van Cuong:First, the general theme of this conference is the regional security structure. In particular, at the opening session of the conference, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong mentioned the East Sea and stated that the early settlement of disputes in the East Sea as well as the development and completion of the Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC) is an urgent task for ASEAN countries and China. He also affirmed that a stable regional security structure is necessary not only for the countries involved in the disputes but also for Asia in general.

That means, in simple terms, the focus of this Conference is Beijing with its increasingly unreasonable actions in the East Sea, such as converting reefs into military bases, plotting to occupy and control a region's airspace and territorial waters.

In addition, another new topic has emerged, which is illegal immigration in Southeast Asian countries. This is also a highly topical event and attracts the attention of the international community. However, the nature of these two issues is completely different and in terms of “heat”, the East Sea issue is still “hotter” and discussed more.

Reporter:Could you please elaborate on the content and opinions of the countries participating in the Dialogue on the East Sea and China issue?

Major General Le Van Cuong:As I have said, the international community is increasingly reacting strongly to China's actions in the East Sea and this Dialogue is a forum, an opportunity for them to speak their minds and express their attitudes.

As for the US, its stance against Beijing’s actions that violate international law in the East Sea continues to be firmly maintained. Mr. Carter - US Secretary of Defense warned the Beijing government to “immediately and permanently stop” activities that change the status quo in the East Sea and that the US is ready to intervene to ensure freedom of navigation and overflight in accordance with international law. “US warships and aircraft can absolutely operate in the East Sea as anywhere in the world that international law allows, and the US is still doing so,” Mr. Carter declared.

The above viewpoint received high consensus from the Defense Ministers of countries such as Australia and Japan. In particular, Japanese Defense Minister Gen Nakatani also called Beijing's actions in the East Sea illegal, a direct threat to regional peace and security, and called on countries to act responsibly and participate in maintaining regional security order. Of course, Beijing is his main target.

Those are some of the reactions of the major countries attending this Dialogue. Of course, the ASEAN community maintains the policy of resolving disputes peacefully, through dialogue and responsible behavior from all parties involved. Not as strong and direct as the US or Japan, but it is a way to express an attitude that is clear enough and tactful enough.

Reporter:Faced with such a "wave" of opposition, how did the Chinese representative participating in the Dialogue react, Major General?

Major General Le Van Cuong:This year, the person sent by China to attend the Shangri-La Dialogue is Admiral Su Jianguo - Deputy Chief of the General Staff of the Chinese People's Liberation Army. With Beijing's usual tone, Mr. Su declared that the accusations of the international community were incorrect. He also emphasized that: "China's establishment of an air defense identification zone in the East Sea is to ensure Beijing's national defense security". At the same time, in the sovereignty disputes in the East Sea, China affirms that it is always interested in ensuring maritime security and that the situation in the East Sea remains peaceful and stable, and that there have never been any problems related to security or freedom of navigation.

Regarding the construction of military bases on submerged islands, Mr. To's argument is that it is to "serve search and rescue at sea, prevent and overcome the consequences of natural disasters, conduct marine scientific research, observe meteorology, protect the environment and serve fishing activities".

The above vague and baseless arguments immediately received reactions from the delegates attending the Dialogue through more than 10 questions. However, Mr. To Kien Quoc's answers can be said to be extremely disappointing. Apart from reading a pre-prepared speech, he did not satisfactorily and directly answer any of the 15 questions above.

Reporter:According to the Major General, after the Shangri-La Dialogue, will the international community continue to react and what specific actions will they take to protest China's behavior in the East Sea?

Major General Le Van Cuong:Certainly, the international community will continue to react under two conditions: First, China continues its unreasonable actions in the East Sea, threatening regional peace and security; and second, China has not yet provided a suitable explanation and convincing legal basis to justify its actions.

According to the opinion of US Senator John McCain - with which I fully agree, it is necessary to bring the East Sea dispute issue to the United Nations Security Council, where the international and regional communities must unite and resolutely fight.

As for the conclusion of the 2015 Shangri-La Dialogue, I would like to affirm that this was an extremely big failure of China, because of its indifferent attitude, irresponsibility and lack of goodwill to listen and accept the opinions of the community. Those are not very good impressions that no country wants to leave in the eyes of the international community, even if it is a country with a billion people and formidable power.

Reporter:Thanks for the chat, Major General!

Thuc Anh(Perform)