As an island nation isolated in the Pacific Ocean, Palau has a land area of only 459 square kilometers and a population of 18,000, which has little international presence. However, Palau is one of the 13 "countries with diplomatic relations" of the Taiwan authorities, and relations with Chinese mainland are not harmonious.
A few days ago, Palau President Pratt & Whiss said in an interview that Chinese ships have repeatedly entered Palau's exclusive economic zone and conducted "surveys" near Palau's submarine fiber optic cable, hoping that the US military will strengthen patrols in the waters.
In this regard, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin said that Chinese vessels have not carried out any maritime survey and investigation activities, but only sheltered in relevant waters, and China has always abided by international law and basic norms governing international relations, and required Chinese ships to exercise their right to freedom of navigation in accordance with the law.
Palau President Pratt & Whise
China has informed relevant countries in advance of the navigation activities of Chinese vessels in relevant waters. Logically speaking, the Palau government knows about this, but it deliberately hyped it, touched porcelain Chinese ships, and now it is "slapped in the face" by the Chinese side.
The exclusive economic zone is not a territorial sea and ships of other countries enjoy freedom of navigation, as long as they comply with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and international regulations. Moreover, the Chinese ships were sheltered from the wind at that time, due to special circumstances.
Palau's protest against the entry of Chinese vessels into the exclusive economic zone was addressed to the United States, which hopes it will grant them asylum. Palau President Pratt & Huis said Palau welcomed the strengthening of the U.S. military presence on the ground and welcomed the presence of U.S. troops.
Palau
Wang Wenbin said that security cooperation between countries should not target third parties. Palau wants to station U.S. troops, but it is not good to say who it is, after all, Palau's location is relatively important, and it is the gateway to the Pacific Ocean in Southeast Asia.
Palau itself does not face external threats, and no country threatens it, and the President of Palau said that he wants to be protected by the US military, which may be just a pretense, and it is the United States itself that really wants to station troops in Palau, and the President of Palau may only be a mouthpiece for the United States.
To put it simply, the United States wants to station troops in Palau, but there is no suitable reason, so it signals Palau to hype up the "China threat", and then the United States will strengthen its military presence in the Pacific on the grounds of "maintaining regional security".
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin
Historically a Spanish colony, Palau was later sold to Germany, occupied by Japan after the outbreak of World War I, and seized by the United States during World War II. Palau was held under U.S. trusteeship after World War II until 1994, when Palau became an independent country.
Although Palau has become independent, the United States still has strong control over the country, and under the Treaty of Free Association signed by Palau, Palau's defense is still the responsibility of the United States, and the United States regularly provides economic assistance to Palau.
The United States has signed agreements with Palau, the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia to take over the defense of these countries. Palau and the Federated States of Micronesia are located in the second island chain of the United States and are the forward positions of the United States to contain China.
American
In recent years, the United States, in line with its strategy of containing China, has continuously wooed Pacific island countries and increased its assistance to these countries. So if the United States stationed troops in Palau, the target would undoubtedly be China, and Wang Wenbin has already issued a reminder.
In fact, too much involvement with the United States is not necessarily a good thing, taking the Marshall Islands as an example, the United States has carried out 67 nuclear tests on the island, seriously damaging the local ecological environment, and the residents of the Marshall Islands are also plagued by nuclear radiation.
According to researchers at Columbia University, some islands in the Marshall Islands have 10 to 1,000 times the intensity of nuclear radiation than Fukushima. These radioactive materials will not disappear in a short period of time and will be a long-term problem for the Marshall Islands government.
Marshall Islands nuclear test
The United States Government had never apologized to the residents of the Marshall Islands, and the United States had been awarded $2.3 billion to the Republic of the Marshall Islands by an international tribunal, but the United States had refused to comply. What happened to the Marshall Islands is certainly a lesson for other Pacific island nations.
In recent years, some Pacific island countries have begun to establish diplomatic relations with China and develop cooperation with China. The most typical example is the Solomon Islands, which has signed a framework agreement on security cooperation with China.
At the same time, China is also discussing the signing of a memorandum of understanding on economic cooperation, and Solomon Islands will catch the express train of China's development in the future. China is by no means a threat to Pacific island countries, but a partner.