China Makes Official Complaint Over, Philippines Demand More US Involvement in South China Sea

By Dustin M Braden - 25 May '15 10:07AM

China has logged an official complaint about spy plane flights in the South China Sea at the same time the Philippines is demanding greater US involvement just days after a harrowing showdown between the Chinese and US navies.

Reuters reports the official complaint was made through diplomatic channels and said the Chinese were strongly dissatisfied with recent flyovers in the Spratly Islands by a PA-8 Poseidon. The Chinese also described the flights as provocative.

The Chinese said that the international right to free movement does not extend to ignoring the rights of sovereign nations to control their own land, air, and sea territory. China has been constructing artificial islands in the chain of atolls and reefs and using them to house military installations. Vietnam is also building islands in the contested territory.

China views the Spratlys as their own territory, even though they are roughly 600 miles from the Chinese mainland. International law holds that a country has claims and control over land and sea which extend roughly 200 miles from its mainland.

The US and other nations in the South China Sea such as Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam, and the Philippines view these claims as overly broad, particularly because these countries are actually within the 200 mile sphere proscribed by the UN Law of the Sea.

Another Reuters report says that Philippine Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin has made explicit that he and his country would like the United States to take a stronger posture in the South China Sea to help reinforce Philippine claims in the region.

The Philippines are said to be seeking used planes, ships, and radar systems to better monitor the situation and bolster their own military forces.

It is unclear if Gazmin will push the US to increase its naval presence around the islands. After the Chinese Navy warned a US aircraft to leave the airspace above one of the contested islands, some US officials suggested the the US Navy may send warships to patrol the area and deter the Chinese.