OPINION:
China and other victims of Japanese aggression 75 years ago have long memories. The fact that Japan now is considering joining the freedom of navigation naval patrols in the South China Sea will stoke this Chinese anger as the Middle Kingdom attempts to project its power in the region.
The building of man-made islands in the Spratleys and elsewhere in order to restrict navigation and freedom of the seas is a real threat to peace in the Pacific. To steal a phrase from Bush 41, this cannot stand. There is no way the United States or any other trading partner that traverses the South China Sea and believes in the rule of law, can allow this to happen.
Japanese involvement in the patrols however, is another matter and could complicate the situation immensely. Japan and South Korea are already at odds over the seriousness of Japan’s apology regarding the South Korean ’comfort women’ during the Second World War.
The Guardian reports Japan’s prime minister, Shinzo Abe, reportedly told Barack Obama during their meeting on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Manila that Tokyo was open to the idea of patrolling the area. Japan is also looking at providing warships to the Philippines to accomplish this mission.
China has reacted angrily to the recent passage of U.S. Navy warships within their declared sovereign waters, stating that further provocations could cause additional Chinese construction in the area.
Japan is slowly evolving from its self-defense only stance and this change will cause old memories to rise to the forefront throughout the region. With China bent on provoking and threatening its neighbors, this is a volatile geopolitical cocktail.
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