Why China's land reclamation is legitimate and justified
- By Ma Shikun
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E-mail China.org.cn, September 8, 2015
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The United States disagrees strongly with China's land reclamation and build-out in the South China Sea. Washington sees Beijing's move as heightening tension and impeding navigation safety and calls for it to stop. Beijing cites multiple reasons to justify its action and mitigate US concerns.
First, China's actions are within the scope of its sovereignty; they are legitimate and justified, and do not violate any provisions of international law. The objections raised by the Philippines and Vietnam are politically motivated rather than well-grounded. The US should know better.
Second, China has been transparent about the island build-out, which is for a good cause. Apart from meeting China's own defense needs, the bulk of the facilities will serve civilian purposes, including maritime search and rescue, tsunami early warning, earthquake monitoring, navigation safety, marine scientific research, meteorological observation, environmental protection and fishery services. Chinese officials have said time and again that in time, other countries can also access those facilities.
The South China Sea is an important shipping lane. Four-fifths of China's external trade and half of international merchant ships pass through these waters, which span an area of over 3 million square kilometers and are prone to accidents. By constructing civilian facilities on the islands and reefs, China is contributing to navigational safety and raising the level of maritime cooperation in the region.
Since May, China has been building two multi-functional lighthouses on Huayang Reef and Chigua Reef (also known as Cuarteron Reef and Johnson South Reef). At 50 meters high and covering 22 nautical miles in radius, the lighthouses will be a great navigational aid to ships passing through the waters, foreign as well as Chinese.
Of the six airstrips on South China Sea features, only one is built by the People's Republic of China. Foreign reports allege that China is turning Yongshu Reef (also known as Fiery Cross Reef) into a manmade island, but China has simply tried to fulfill its international responsibility as a major maritime nation. The reef, if not built out, is not big enough to host a platform for maritime search and rescue.
Third, China is just catching up with longstanding efforts by others to build out South China Sea islands and reefs. For two years, the Philippines has been engaged in land reclamation and build-out on islands and reefs taken from China. For five years, Vietnam has been engaged in massive construction activities — including building harbor basins, runways, barracks, missile positions and helipads — on more than 20 islands and reefs seized from China.
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