The root cause or root cause of the Philippines' recent bad behavior in the South China Sea is not in the Philippines, but in the United States.
The situation in the South China Sea has been highly concerned by the majority of netizens these days. Air Force Senior Colonel Tian Junli, spokesman for the Southern Theater of Operations, said that on 10 May, the US guided missile destroyer USS Halsey illegally intruded into China's territorial waters in Xisha without the approval of the Chinese Government. The Southern Theater of the Chinese People's Liberation Army organized naval and air forces to track, monitor, and warn and drive away in accordance with laws and regulations.
The US destroyer USS Halsey, which is mentioned in this place, illegally intruded into China's territorial waters in the Xisha Islands. What kind of response did the PLA make? Organize naval and air forces, track and monitor them, and warn them to leave.
This is the "Halsey", which passed through the Taiwan Strait two days ago. Not only did the US warship pass through the Taiwan Strait, but the US side also made a big noise to create public opinion. The "Taiwan authorities" are also cooperating with public opinion. Immediately after that, the "Halsey" came to the South China Sea and intruded into our Xisha territorial waters, so the scene mentioned in the news happened.
On May 7, an eye-catching satellite image attracted attention on social platforms on the Internet. The picture, taken on May 5, captures a PLA Type 055 10,000-ton destroyer docked at Mischief Island Pier on Mischief Reef in the South China Sea. And three days ago, on May 4, China's military trumpet Weibo released an image propaganda film "Young Eagle, Flying Forward", in which the H-6K appeared on the picture of taking off and landing on Yongxing Island in Xisha.
This series of news, netizens have a variety of comments. Some people say that the "Halsey" is rusty, but in contrast, China's surface warships are well-maintained and majestic. Some people are also talking about whether it is useful to just track and monitor and warn to drive away? Why not just open fire? Some people are also saying that the deployment of Chinese troops in the South China Sea as shown in the media is directly aimed at the US-Philippine military exercises and the Philippines' provocation in the South China Sea. However, against a mere Philippines, the 055 drive and H-6K are a bit of a "knife killing".
Seeing these comments, I was also moved to express my own opinions. It is common to see descriptions of US ships rusted, US planes that are old, flying parts, and so on. If you see too many people, you will say that other people's warships are rusty, and that other people's warplanes have lost parts, but when you see them every day, dangling in the waters around you, why don't you see your warships and your fighter planes going to the coast of the United States to walk around and fly?
Sounds like some truth. Speaking of the 055 drive, the H-6K, to deter the Philippines from "killing chickens", I also want to say that these things are not used to deter the Philippines, but to deal with the United States. The root cause or root cause of the Philippines' recent bad behavior in the South China Sea is not in the Philippines, but in the United States.
So is it interesting to talk about the rusty US ship, the US plane flying off parts, taking the 055 big drive to dock at the Mischief Island pier, and the H-6K taking off at the South China Sea island and reef airfield to show others? What is the goal? I still remember that a few years ago in Alaska, Blinken and Sullivan told senior Chinese officials that we were speaking from a position of strength, and they were directly and forcefully refuted by the Chinese side, telling him that China would not accept that set.
Whether to eat or not to eat is not a matter of saying that you can solve the problem. It doesn't matter whether you speak with a position of strength, the key is that you have a position of strength. You have to show your position of strength to the other party and the whole world. When you put your own position of strength on the table, and the other party finds that you can't match it at all, at this time, the other party says that speaking with a position of strength, doesn't it become a joke?
Of course, this thing is not only to show those countries that claim to speak in a position of strength, but also to show more countries related to it, telling them which side of the real position of strength is. China is not the kind of country that speaks in a position of strength, nor is it the kind of power country that uses a so-called "position of strength" to coerce the other side to achieve certain goals. We are reasonable and righteous, but if you want to speak to us in a position of strength, we will tell you that your position is no longer there.
If China doesn't eat that, we will let the world see that China doesn't eat that. Talking about the rusty stains of the US ship, talking about the flying parts of the US ship, and publicly displaying the 055 drive docked at the Mischief Island pier and the H-6K taking off from Xisha Airport, is just to tell the United States and the relevant countries to see which side of the power position lies in this sea area and in this area.
Speaking of this place, some people may say, is it useful to play this set? It was the man who went up directly to greet him, which worked better than anything else.
Does it work? Let's take a look at previous examples. We all know that the United States has been stirring up trouble in the South China Sea for more than a day or two. It was also very fierce back then. Remember the so-called "South China Sea Arbitration"? In 2016, there was a lot of noise, and then it disappeared.
At that time, it was not only the Philippines that was jumping up and making trouble with us in the South China Sea, and now there is only one Philippines left. The Philippines also has different voices within its borders. The Philippines has also reached a lot of tacit understanding with us before, and the recordings of the phone calls between the two sides that we have made public illustrate these problems.
So what happened in the South China Sea in 2016 so far? No one can tell. We only know that at that time, the United States sent two aircraft carrier battle groups, the USS Reagan and the USS Stonis, into the South China Sea. What was the strength of these two aircraft carrier battle groups at that time? It includes about 10 missile destroyers and 150 fighters of various types. Harris, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, personally commanded the command. During the confrontation between the two sides, Harris was at one point relieved, and the U.S. military was ready for war tonight.
What does the end result look like? The start of the war did not occur, and the American ships and planes withdrew overnight. Harris also lost his rank and military position and went to Japan to become ambassador to Japan. How did such a result happen? There are various speculations and interpretations on the Internet, including the confrontation between Chinese naval and air forces and the US military, and the Chinese launch of anti-aircraft carrier ballistic missiles in the corresponding sea area exercises, accurately hitting the target. Of course, there is no official information to confirm these things. But will the US military retreat for no reason? Will Harris, who has just taken office, lose his official position for no reason?
It is conceivable that during that time period, in the South China Sea, there was a contest and comparison of strength and status. In the South China Sea in 2016, the United States finally returned with a feather in the end, and the situation in the South China Sea tended to calm down in a state of high wind and waves.
What we are also seeing today is a comparison of the strength and status of China and the United States in the region. If you can tell the United States, and you can tell all the countries involved, that the United States is far from being able to compare with me in this region, what will be the next result? I don't think I need to say it, everybody knows that.
Speaking of this, some people may say that compared with the United States, the gap between China's naval and air forces and the United States at this stage is probably still obvious, right? I would like to remind you that I am talking about the waters of the South China Sea, in this region. So when it comes to the South China Sea, within the first island chain, or even outside the first island chain, can we say that the United States' position of strength no longer exists? If I had to say it, at least the days when the United States spoke to us solely on the basis of its position of strength are long gone.