China's "two-faced" approach

(Baonghean) - On June 16, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs vaguely announced that it "will soon complete" several artificial island construction projects in Vietnam's Spratly Islands in the South China Sea, which it has illegally occupied. Among these projects are structures intended for military purposes. This statement immediately became a counter-attack against China's previous justifications, making the international community increasingly aware of its "two-faced" tactics.

The Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs accuses China's illegal land reclamation activities in the South China Sea of ​​destroying 1.2 square kilometers of coral reef. Photo: PHILSTAR

At the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore in May, the head of the Chinese delegation, Admiral Sun Jianguo, Vice Chief of the General Staff of the People's Liberation Army (PLA), stated: "We hope that the countries involved will work together on the same ground to build the South China Sea into a sea of ​​peace, friendship, and cooperation." However, these flowery pronouncements about peace and civilian purposes such as "search and rescue, disaster relief, and environmental protection" completely contradict what is happening in reality. China's actions have severely damaged the ecological balance in the South China Sea. In a recent statement, a spokesperson for the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs said that China's island-building activities in the South China Sea have destroyed approximately 300 square acres (equivalent to 121 hectares) of coral reefs, and this number is certainly not yet over.

Immediately after China made blatant claims about its illegal construction activities, the US State Department asserted that China's plan "does not contribute to reducing tensions, does not support the development of peaceful and diplomatic solutions, or help reinforce Beijing's disputed territorial claims." Speaking in Hanoi on June 22nd, US Ambassador to ASEAN Nina Hachigian also stated: "No amount of sand can change the issue of sovereignty." Clearly, what China is doing has exposed its previous false claims, increasing suspicion and creating an increasingly tense confrontation with the international community.

Phuong Thao