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A new city has emerged on the map
of China. China's State Council has approved the foundation of the
district level city of Sangsha. Governance over the islands of Xisha,
Zhong Sha and Nan Sha – as well as the adjacent waters – will be
concentrated in this administrative center.
Sangsha
therefore becomes the southernmost city in China and, taking into
account the area of the surrounding waters, it is the largest
municipality too. At the same time, from the administrative division
point of view, the appearance of a new city on the map looks like a
curious incident. Usually a district level city in China has a
population of no less than 200,000 people, while the population of the
three islands together is not more than 500. However, from a
geopolitical standpoint, it is a very clever move on the part of
Beijing.
The city government of Sangsha will be
located on Yongxing Island. Yongxing covers an area of about two square
kilometers and is considered to be the outpost of Chinese interests in
this natural resource-rich area of the South China Sea. In addition a
subdivision of the Chinese People's Liberation Army is deployed here,
Boeing-737 class airplanes can land on the local runway, and 5000-ton
ships can harbor at its port.
This step is evidently
connected to the aggravation of territorial disputes in the South China
Sea. China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Malaysia, and Brunei are all
disputing the sovereignty over the islands. The Taiwan administration
has also laid a claim for control over the islands.
It
is possible that plans for founding a city in order to maintain
effective control over this hydrocarbon-rich area have existed for a
long time. Back in 2007, the Hong Kong Mingbao newspaper reported about
the possible foundation of a city on the disputed islands. It was
designated as “X City”. At the time of the news, Vietnam reacted very
painfully to a possible increase in Chinese presence in the disputed
territories. The Vietnamese Foreign Ministry came forward with sharp
criticism of Beijing, and mass protests were held in two big cities –
Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh. As a result, the plans for X City had to be
abandoned for a while.
The revival of the project is
once again connected with the position of Hanoi. Most observers consider
that the foundation of the city of Sangsha was a response to the
adoption of the Maritime Law of Vietnam. According to this document,
Vietnam has sovereignty over the islands of Nan Sha, Xisha, and the
adjacent waters. Beijing proclaimed this step illegal, because it
violated the “indisputable sovereignty” of China. In its turn, Hanoi
believes that its position is supported by historical documents which
prove that, already in the 16th century, Vietnam was exercising
effective control over the disputed territories.
Yakov
Berger, analyst from the Institute of Far East of the Russian Academy
of Sciences, believes that today we are more or less dealing with
propaganda gestures and a war of words – but the parties to the conflict
are at the same time steadily strengthening their military muscles,
which can be fraught with a potential danger to peace and stability in
the South China Sea region.
“There is nothing left
but hope that it will not come to a serious confrontation. However,
serious armed conflicts at sea used to occur between China and Vietnam
up to the war of 1979. The matter is that China and its neighbors are
putting in a claim for developing oil and gas deposits, and these
countries are experiencing a very serious energy supplies shortage. In
fact, the possession of natural resources is at stake in this dispute.”
Commenting
on the decision about the founding of Sangsha, the influential Chinese
newspaper Global Times drew attention to China’s latest technological
achievements, namely progress in deep-water drilling and the latest
tests of manned deep-water vessels. Such statements are not accidental.
China is demonstrating that it is ready for a serious struggle for the
resources of the South China Sea. It seems, therefore, that the city of
Sangsha is to become China’s frontline in this battle. Yet one big
question remains: what will be the reaction of their neighbors? And
would the US get new trump cards by promoting the idea of expanding
their participation in protecting states in the region in the face of
growing Chinese influence?
The Global Times writes
that Chinese people should not be interested in the reaction of Vietnam
and the Philippines to the new city of Sangsha. However, the paper also
states that in the future China is going to face “uncertainty” in the
South China Sea area.
Source :Moscow Time
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