US Pacific Fleet commander threatens China over South China Sea
In an aggressive speech directed against China, US Pacific Fleet commander Admiral Scott Swift yesterday signalled that Washington intended to challenge Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea under the pretext of “freedom of the seas.” His remarks are part of an escalating US campaign directed against Chinese land reclamation on reefs under Beijing’s administration.
Swift’s speech came just a day after the Obama administration finalised the Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP)—a trade and investment bloc aimed at strengthening US economic dominance in Asia and undermining China’s economic clout. The TPP is the economic arm of Obama’s “pivot to Asia” which is aimed at subordinating China to US interests through every means, including military force.
Swift made no mention of the TPP, but US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter underscored its strategic importance in April when he bluntly stated that the TPP was “as important to me as another aircraft carrier.” Washington will exploit closer economic alignments to secure stronger strategic ties.
The fact that Swift used the Sydney Pacific 2015 Maritime conference as a platform underlines the extent to which Australia, a military ally and a TPP partner, is deeply integrated into the “pivot” and the US military build-up against China.
Read more: https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2015/10/07/scse-o07.html