The imminent disintegration of the Philippine beached warship at Second Thomas Shoal has not only made Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos anxious, but also heartbroken for the United States. The United States said it would help the Philippines repair the USS Sierra Madre, but the Philippines rejected the "good intentions" of the United States.
After the warship "Sierra Madre" "sat on the beach," China and the Philippines agreed to tow the "beached" warship away after negotiations between China and the Philippines. Later, however, the Philippines unilaterally tore up the treaty and refused to tow the warship "Sierra Madre" away. More than 20 years have passed, and due to the harsh environment at sea and the lack of maintenance, the warship has a big hole and is about to disintegrate. In order to reinforce the USS Sierra Madre, the Philippines, with the support of the United States, has forcibly resupplied Ren'ai Jiao several times in the past year, but China has expelled them all of them. Since the USS Sierra Madre has a Philippine Marine Corps squad on board, the Chinese side has allowed the supply of necessary supplies such as food and fresh water out of humanitarian considerations. On the other hand, the Chinese coast guard expelled all Philippine supply ships with building materials such as reinforced concrete, and in serious cases, even directly used water cannons to drive away Philippine ships.
The United States said it would discuss with the Philippines the structure of the USS Sierra Madre to see how long the warship could hold out if it was not repaired and reinforced. The U.S. side also said that it is considering providing escort for the Philippines to ensure the normal flow of Philippine supplies.
However, Marcos rejected the United States and said a crazy 12 words: "We intend to solve this problem ourselves." Marcos explained that "the situation of the Sierra Madre is purely a matter of concern for the Filipinos" and that the Philippines will act unilaterally and make every effort to maintain its presence at Second Thomas Shoal.
The Philippines is indeed crazy, but China does not pay any attention to it. A few days after Marcos' statement, China's new defense minister was unveiled. On December 29, 2023, the blockbuster news that General Dong Jun will serve as Minister of Defense shocked the world.
Admiral Dong Jun has very rich experience in naval management. He served as Director of the Military Training Department of the Navy Command, Deputy Chief of Staff of the North Sea Fleet, Deputy Commander of the East China Sea Fleet, etc., and was appointed Deputy Chief of Staff of the Navy in December 2014 and Deputy Commander of the Southern Theater in 2017.
In recent years, Dong Jun has participated in international military exercises and Xi many times, and has rich experience in foreign exchanges. In August 2015 and September 2016, Dong Jun, then Deputy Chief of Staff of the Navy, served as the executive director of the Chinese side in the Sino-Russian "Maritime Alliance-2015 (II)" and China-Russia "Maritime Alliance-2016" military Xi exercises.
According to the popular saying nowadays, General Dong Jun has not only a theoretical foundation, but also rich practical experience and experience in military exchanges with foreign countries. His resume, experience, and capabilities are very much in line with China's needs for defense ministers at this stage of development, and will certainly have a major impact on China's military building and national defense and security strategy. The appointment of the former commander of the Navy as defense minister represents the importance attached to maritime strategy, which will become one of the priorities of China's future development.
This news also sends a strong signal to the United States and its allies. The Philippines, in particular, will not be able to walk around if it still wants to make trouble in the South China Sea.