The governments of United States and Philippines signed this Thursday a military pact that allows the troops of Washington deploy to four strategic bases in this Asian archipelago, a move that China considers that “it will aggravate tensions in Asia.”
(Read here: ‘The risks of a Chinese military action against Taiwan have increased’)
“This is an extremely important agreement. It gives us the opportunity to interact in a more effective way,” the US Secretary of Defense said Thursday. Lloyd Austinat a press conference in Manila with his Filipino counterpart, Carlos Galvez.
(See also: Why the US and other countries refuse to send F-16s to Ukraine)
The decision is seen as a key move for Washington to react to a possible invasion of Taiwan by Chinaan episode that has been insistently warned about in recent months.
Also, it is a race that Beijing and Washington they fight in the Far East to influence the governments of the region.
The agreement, the text says, “completes” the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Pact (EDCA), signed in 2014 between the two countries and through which the United States could already use five military bases in the Philippine archipelago, key in the pulse between China and the United States for influence in the area.
In this way, US troops would almost double the number of bases they have access to, bringing the total to nine.
EDCA, the statement said, “is a key pillar of the alliance between the United States and the Philippines, which supports mutual training, the development of (military) exercises and interoperability between both Armies. Its expansion will make our alliance stronger and more resilient, and will accelerate the modernization of our capabilities.”
“This is especially important, especially as China continues to increase its claims in the Philippine Sea (South China Sea),” Austin stressed, in a speech filled with other, more indirect allusions to China and peppered with defenses of “an Indo-Pacific free”.
Thus, he assured, for example, that the pact will allow them to “increase their mutual capabilities to resist an armed attack”, at a time when tension is growing in the area in the face of a possible invasion of taiwana self-governing island that Beijing does not rule out invading and that Washington would in principle defend, according to the Efe news agency.
In fact, a possible Chinese invasion of Taiwan has been the subject of serious warnings.
The last one occurred a few days ago after the American newspaper The Washington Post revealed in one of his articles a memorandum warning that a possible confrontation could take place in 2025.
“Open conflict between China and the United States could be just two years away, according to an unusually blunt memo from a top American general that is just the latest in a series of alarming predictions that the world’s two major military powers are at risk of a direct collision, most likely over the fate of Taiwan”, says the Post on its page after revealing the document from General Michael A. Minihan, of the United States Air Force.
What does China say and what does Taiwan have to do with it?
China he sees the US moves in the Philippines as an attempt to cut off his zone of influence in Asia.
“Defense cooperation should not be aimed at targeting anyone or harming the interests of a third country. Out of sheer selfishness and a ‘zero-sum’ mentality, the United States continues to boost its military presence in Asia aggravating tensions” , affirmed in turn the Chinese foreign spokeswoman Mao Ning to a question about the pact.
Open conflict between China and the United States could be only two years away
According to spokeswoman Mao, “China is committed to upholding regional peace and stability.” “The ‘China threat’ narrative and any attempt to incite confrontation must end now,” she said.
Although tensions between China and United Statess in Asia come from years ago, last August there was a sharpening when the then Democratic leader in the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, toured Taiwan.
Pelosi then became the highest US official to visit Taipei since her predecessor Newt Gingrich in 1997.
These visits by top US officials upset China because they view the island as a rogue province.
China and Taiwan have been de facto separated since 1949, when Mao Zedong’s communist troops defeated the nationalists, who took refuge on the island.
But the United States and almost the entire international community adopt the “one China” policy, which excludes diplomatic relations with the nationalist-ruled island. However, the Americans continue to give military support to Taipei, something that Beijing considers “provocations”.
For this reason, the Chinese government has been carrying out military exercises and air raids in Taiwan in recent months. The most recent occurred in December, when 71 aircraft flew over the vicinity of the island.
The Chinese military portfolio warned that its troops “will take any necessary measure to protect the national sovereignty and territorial integrity” of the Asian country.
CARLOS JOSE REYES GARCIA
INTERNATIONAL SUB-EDITOR
TIME
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