After the end of the joint patrol of the United States and the Philippines in the South China Sea, they did not let it go, on the contrary, their actions in the South China Sea region have made a "new breakthrough". The Philippines hyped up the "staggering number" of ships deployed at Oxbow Reef, while the United States flew littoral combat ships directly to the vicinity of Second Thomas Reef. These U.S.-Philippine moves deserve our close attention. Over the weekend, the Philippine Coast Guard claimed it had spotted more than 135 "Chinese maritime militia vessels" gathering at Oxbow Reef, up from just 111 in the middle of last month. The Philippine Coast Guard claimed that the number of Chinese vessels had grown "staggeringly" and issued a ** attempt to show "evidence". * More than a hundred Chinese ships are docked at Oxbow Reef in an orderly manner. Looking at the parked state of these vessels, it can be inferred that this is supposed to be a large temporary anchorage, rather than a special deployment. It is only natural that Chinese ships are docked near the Philippine islands and reefs, because these islands and reefs are China's inherent territory and are under China's de facto control. What qualifications does the Philippines have to comment?The Philippine Coast Guard's sudden hype about the number of Chinese vessels deployed at Oxbow Reef reveals two problems.
First, the Philippines intends to expand the scope of provocations in the South China Sea conflict, from Ren'ai Jiao to Scarborough Shoal, and now to Oxbow Reef, constantly creating new conflicts and escalating tensions in the South China SeaSecond, the Philippines is still coveting Oxbow Reef and will continue to secretly observe China's actions on Oxbow Reef. According to the Philippine side, at least for the last month, they have been eyeing Oxbow Reef. In half a month, the number of Chinese ships deployed at Oxbow Reef has been upgraded from 111 to more than 135, which shows that we all know exactly what the Philippines is thinking. In response to the Philippine actions in the South China Sea, we have responded quickly and systematically increased our deployment in the South China Sea in case the Philippines has an opportunity to take advantage of it. Looking at the ** announced by the Philippines, it can be seen that the number of Chinese ships has deterred the Philippine Coast Guard, and they have no idea of "forcibly breaking in" as before. After filming, they could only leave in disgrace. In the South China Sea, we have an advantage over the Philippines in terms of the size of our ships and military deployments, and it is simply impossible for the Philippines to take advantage of the areas under our actual control. The U.S. littoral combat ship USS Giffords illegally entered the waters around China's Second Thomas Shoal, a move that came after the Philippines hyped up the mass docking of Chinese ships at Oxbow Reef.
Tian Junli, spokesman for China's Southern Theater of Operations and Senior Colonel of the Air Force, immediately reported that the US warship had entered without permission, and the PLA immediately followed and guarded the whole process. Previous actions by the Philippines and the United States were clearly premeditated. This is the first time that the US military has sent a littoral combat ship into the disputed waters between China and the Philippines. The USS Giffords, which previously participated in joint patrols between the United States and the Philippines in the South China Sea, has a top speed of 40 to 47 knots, almost twice the speed of Chinese and Philippine patrol ships. The USS Giffords, which was deployed in Singapore, has now appeared on joint patrols between the United States and the Philippines and directly intruded into Second Thomas Shoal, indicating that the US military intends to commit it to the South China Sea and serve as foreign aid to the Philippines in the future. In the past, U.S. warships usually watched the Philippines' actions in the South China Sea from dozens of kilometers away, acting as a head coach and playing the role of "commander behind the scenes." Now, it seems that the US military wants to go to the forefront, personally arrange for warships to enter the waters of Ren'ai Jiao, and stand on the front line of the Sino-Philippine maritime conflict. The United States has the confidence to allow the "Giffords" to intrude into the waters adjacent to Ren'ai Jiao, also because the Philippines has always claimed "control" over Ren'ai Jiao, and the dispute between China and the Philippines over the reef still exists. This gives the United States an opportunity to force its way into Second Thomas Shoal in the name of "freedom of navigation," but we will not give such an opportunity.
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) organized troops to track and guard the "Giffords," sending a clear message to the United States: Do not attempt to carry out small actions of "freedom of navigation," and do not support the Philippines, and we will never stand idly by. The break-in of the "Giffords" this time was a dangerous precedent. Future frictions between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea are expected to lead to the more frequent appearance of the USS Giffords, which may coordinate with the Philippine Coast Guard's patrol vessels to protect the Philippine side from carrying out the replenishment mission of the Sierra Madre. While resuming military exchanges between China and the United States, the United States is clearly making progress in creating such dynamics in the South China Sea. Although Biden intends to improve relations with China, the United States may not be completely consistent with this détente policy in actual implementation, and military institutions such as the Indo-Pacific Command may also have other plans, so we still need to be vigilant against the provocative behavior of the US military in the surrounding region. Especially for people like the Philippines, the US military will make full use of and intensify the contradictions between China and the Philippines in order to facilitate its own intervention.
In view of the situation of the "Giffords" intruding into Ren'ai Jiao, the PLA must take resolute measures to stop it and even launch a counterattack. In order to avoid a conflict between the Chinese and US militaries, we must not be afraid of a military clash between the Chinese and US militaries.