China has consistently accused the US of igniting tensions with neighbours – India and Japan and says that Washington desperately wants to see conflicts in other parts of the world and is thus is provoking hostility against China.
Chinese state media writes that as tensions between China and India continue to flare-up, the US media has already reported its enthusiasm over another possible clash brewing between Japan and China.
CNNÂ recently published an article – “Why this Japan-China island dispute could be Asia’s next military flashpoint,” depicting the China-Japan alteration over the Diaoyu Islands as a “military tinderbox waiting to explode.”
Global Times writes – take NBC News. It quoted US officials who claimed — “from Hong Kong to the South China Sea to the India-China border, Beijing is flexing its muscle and trying to extend its reach at a time when the world is preoccupied with the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.”Â
The CNN article states – “if Japanese territory is attacked by a foreign power, the United States is obligated to defend it.” He quoted provocative remarks from a commentator as saying “the question is not whether China… would want to challenge Japan over the islands. The question is when, and how?”
The dispute over the Diaoyu Islands (Senkaku in Japanese) has been largely brought under control over the past few years. It did not turn into a major barrier in relations between China and Japan and is far from being a tinderbox, GT writes. But US officials are hoping to see a showdown, even an eruption of war, between China and its neighbours.
The US has been inciting passions and hostilities in the Asia-Pacific region, aligning with its previous pivot to Asia-Pacific strategy and current Indo-Pacific Strategy. The South China Sea issue was evidence. Yet, in the end, relevant nations had not been deceived, says GT.
China-Philippine ties have strengthened since Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte took office in 2016 and decided to set aside the maritime dispute and develop effective collaboration with China. The purpose of the US is very clear – they want to see Asian countries exhaust each other, so the US can benefit from the outcome.
The US has been meddling in the Diaoyu Islands disputes for a long time. As tensions between China and Japan were running high in 2010 over the issue, then US secretary of state Hillary Clinton suggested a three-way meeting with China and Japan, and convinced Tokyo by maintaining the Diaoyu Islands “fall within the scope of Article 5 of the 1960 US-Japan Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security.”
GT says look at Japan. It decided to deploy Aegis Ashore missile defence system in 2017 under pressure from the US but soon met opposition from local residents due to the likelihood that interceptors would fall within the residential area. As a result, Japan had to pause the deployment process.
In the latest border conflict between China and India, Washington also played a critical role. GT quotes Arif Rafiq, president of Vizier Consulting LLC – India’s BJP government is emboldened by the US, yet “it would be a mistake for India to count on Washington’s support.”
GT report concludes by claiming that the US desperately wants to see skirmishes in other parts of the world and is thus is provoking sentiments and hostility against China. At this point, Asian nations (Japan, India) need clear understanding and determination to avoid falling into the US ‘war’ trap.
