Findings

Congress finds the following: (1)The South China Sea contains vital commercial shipping lanes and points of access between the Indian Ocean and Pacific Ocean and provides a maritime lifeline to Taiwan, Japan, and the Korean peninsula. (2)China, Vietnam, the Philippines, Taiwan, Malaysia, and Brunei have disputed territorial claims over the Spratly Islands, and China, Taiwan, and Vietnam have disputed territorial claims over the Paracel Islands. (3)In 2009, the Government of the People’s Republic of China introduced the 9-dotted line (also known as the Cow Tongue line) to officially claim most of the 648,000 square miles of the South China Sea, more than any other nation involved in these territorial disputes. (4)Although not a party to these disputes, the United States has a national economic and security interest in maintaining peace, stability and prosperity in East Asia and ensuring that no party threatens or uses force unilaterally to assert maritime territorial claims in East Asia, including in the South China Sea, the East China Sea, or the Yellow Sea. (5)The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has promoted multilateral talks in disputed areas without settling the issue of sovereignty. (6)In 2002, ASEAN and China signed a Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. That declaration committed all parties to those territorial disputes to reaffirm their respect for and commitment to the freedom of navigation in and overflight above the South China Sea as provided for by the universally recognized principles of international law, and to resolve their territorial and jurisdictional disputes by peaceful means, without resorting to the threat or use of force. Yet, in September 2010, tensions were raised in the East China Sea off of the Senkaku (Diaoyutai) Islands, a territory under the legal administration of Japan, when a Chinese fishing vessel deliberately rammed Japanese Coast Guard patrol boats. (7)The Government of the People’s Republic of China deliberately heightened these tensions by making a series of diplomatic protests, including on one occasion summoning the Japanese Ambassador after midnight, by threatening further repercussions if Japan did not immediately release the Chinese ship captain involved in the collisions, and by encouraging anti-Japanese demonstrations in Chinese cities. (8)On February 25, 2011, a frigate from China’s navy fired shots at 3 fishing boats from the Philippines. (9)On March 2, 2011, the Government of the Philippines reported that two patrol boats from China attempted to ram one of its surveillance ships. (10)On May 26, 2011, a maritime security vessel from China cut the cables of an exploration ship from Vietnam, the Binh Minh, in the South China Sea in waters near Cam Ranh Bay in the exclusive economic zone of Vietnam. (11)On May 31, 2011, three Chinese military vessels used guns to threaten the crews of four Vietnamese fishing boats while they were fishing in the waters of the Truong Sa (Spratly) archipelago. (12)On June 3, 2011, Vietnam’s Foreign Ministry released a statement that Vietnam is resolutely opposed to these acts by China that seriously violated the sovereign and jurisdiction rights of Viet Nam to its continental shelf and Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).. (13)On June 9, 2011, three vessels from China, including one fishing vessel and two maritime security vessels, ran into and disabled the cables of another exploration ship from Vietnam, the Viking 2, in the exclusive economic zone of Vietnam. (14)On June 13–14, 2011, the Government of Vietnam held a live-fire military exercise on the uninhabited island of Hon Ong, 25 miles off the coast of Vietnam in the South China Sea. (15)On June 25, 2011, Chinese Peoples’ Liberation Army Major General (Ret.) Peng Guangqian stated in a television interview that China once taught Vietnam a lesson. If Vietnam is not sincere, it will receive a bigger lesson, adding that If Vietnam continues to act tough, play with the knife, sooner or later it will get cut.. (16)On June 26, 2011, the Chinese news agency Xinhua announced that China and Vietnam had agreed to hold talks on how to resolve conflicts arising from a sovereignty dispute over the South China Sea after a June 25 meeting in Beijing between Dai Bingguo, the senior Chinese official in charge of foreign affairs, and Vietnamese Vice Foreign Minister and Special Envoy Ho Xuan Son. (17)It was reported, on June 17, 2011, that the Philippines removed a string of wooden markers that Manila determined was placed by China in disputed areas of the South China Sea amid growing regional tensions. (18)On June 23, 2011, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton told visiting Philippines Foreign Secretary Albert del Rosario that We are determined and committed to supporting the defense of the Philippines.. (19)Philippines Foreign Secretary del Rosario stated that the Philippines is a small country, but is prepared to do what is necessary to stand up to any aggressive action in our backyard. (20)The United States, on June 23, 2011, stated that it was ready to provide hardware to modernize the military of the Philippines. (21)The United States and the Philippines conducted combined naval exercises in the Sulu Sea, near the South China Sea, from June 28 to July 8, 2011. (22)On June 17, 2011, China dispatched one of its largest patrol ships, the Haixun 31, on a voyage through disputed areas of the South China Sea in a deliberate show of force en route to a port of call in Singapore. (23)China’s official media stated that the sailing route of the Haixun 31 in the South China Sea was determined to protect its rights and sovereignty. (24)A spokesperson for Singapore’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs pointed out, on June 20, 2011, that as a major trading nation, Singapore has a critical interest in anything affecting freedom of navigation in all international sea lanes, including those in the South China Sea. (25)Singapore further urged China to clarify its claims in the South China Sea with more precision as the current ambiguity as to their extent has caused serious concerns in the international maritime community. (26)The actions of the Government of the People’s Republic of China in the South China Sea have also affected United States military and maritime vessels transiting through international air space and waters, including the collision of a fighter plane of China with a United States surveillance plane in 2001, the harassment of the USNS Impeccable in March 2009, and the collision of a Chinese submarine with the sonar cable of the USS John McCain in June 2009. (27)In July 2010, People’s Daily, the official newspaper of the Chinese Communist Party, reported that General Ma Xiaotian, deputy chief of the general staff of the People’s Liberation Army, said that China strongly opposed combined naval exercises to be conducted in the West (Yellow) Sea by the United States and the Republic of Korea. (28)These exercises were to be conducted in international waters, as well as Republic of Korea territorial waters, in the vicinity of the site of the March 2010 North Korean torpedo attack on the South Korean military vessel Cheonan, which resulted in 46 deaths. (29)These exercises were to include participation by the USS George Washington aircraft carrier group. (30)In July 2010, Chinese Major General Luo Yuan, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Military Sciences, in an interview with a Hong Kong TV station, stressed the importance of the Yellow Sea as a gateway to China’s capital region and said that if a U.S. aircraft carrier enters the Yellow Sea, it will become a living target. (31)On July 23, 2010, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton stated at the Association of Southeast Asian Nations Regional Forum that the United States, like every nation, has a national interest in freedom of navigation, open access to Asia’s maritime commons, and respect for international law in the South China Sea. (32)Secretary Clinton further expressed the support of the United States for the Declaration by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and China in 2002 on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea, and stated, The United States supports a collaborative diplomatic process by all claimants for resolving the various territorial disputes without coercion.. (33)On October 12, 2010, former Secretary of Defense Robert Gates stated at the ASEAN Defense Ministers Meeting-Plus, The U.S. position on maritime security remains clear: we have a national interest in freedom of navigation; in unimpeded economic development and commerce; and in respect for international law.. Former Secretary Gates further maintained The United States has always exercised our rights and supported the rights of others to transit through, and operate in, international waters.. (34)On June 4, 2011, at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, former Secretary Gates stated that maritime security remains an issue of particular importance for the region, with questions about territorial claims and the appropriate use of the maritime domain presenting on-going challenges to regional stability and prosperity. (35)On June 5, 2011, at the Shangri-La Dialogue, Liang Guanglie, the Defense Minister from China, said, China is committed to maintaining peace and stability in the South China Sea.. (36)On June 14, 2011, Hong Lei, the spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, stated that China always upholds and has been committed to a proper resolution of differences and disputes over the South China Sea in a peaceful manner through bilateral direct negotiation and friendly consultation with relevant countries.. (37)On June 22, 2011, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Cui Tiankai told reporters, in reference to the South China Sea disputes, that I believe the individual countries are actually playing with fire, and I hope the fire will not be drawn to the United States.. (38)On June 29, 2011, the Defense Ministry of the People’s Republic of China stated that Recent drills by the Chinese navy are routine and not connected to the situation in the South China Sea, further calling for people to view the exercises in a rational way. (39)On April 8, 2012, a Philippine plane spotted eight Chinese fishing boats in the vicinity of the Scarborough Shoal, which both countries claim. (40)A Philippine coast guard cutter and two Chinese maritime surveillance craft began a tense 10-day standoff, with the Philippine vessel, citing the upcoming typhoon season, withdrawing but the Chinese ships remained in the area. Moreover, China constructed barriers to prevent Philippine vessels from entering the Scarborough Shoal where it was reported that Chinese flags were raised. (41)A Chinese foreign ministry spokesman condemned a long-planned joint military exercise between the U.S. and the Philippines in April, saying The major trend of the times in this region is peace and development. Military exercise does not represent the major call of the times.. (42)In June of 2012, Vietnam passed a law claiming sovereignty over the Paracel and Spratly Islands and called for mutual respect for international law. (43)China quickly criticized the law, with a foreign ministry statement calling it a serious violation of China’s territorial sovereignty and that China expressed its resolute and vehement opposition. (44)In June of 2012, China’s cabinet, the State Council, approved the establishment of a prefecture-level government in the city of Sansha to oversee the areas claimed by China in the South China Sea. (45)On June 23, 2012, the China National Offshore Oil Corporation invited bids for oil exploration in areas within 200 nautical miles of the continental shelf and exclusive economic zone of Vietnam. (46)On June 28, 2012, the Chinese Defense Ministry announced that military authorities were considering establishing a military presence in the prefecture capitol of Sansha. (47)Also on June 28, Chinese military press spokesman Senior Colonel Geng Yansheng announced that the PLA had begun regular, combat-ready patrols in the South China Sea. (48)On July 11, 2012, Chinese patrol ships were spotted near the disputed Senkaku (Diaoyutai) Islands in the East China Sea. (49)When the Japanese coast guard told the Chinese ships to leave, the crew told them, We are conducting official duty in Chinese waters. Do not interfere. Leave China’s territorial waters.. (50)Japan’s Vice Foreign Minister Kenichrio Sasae called the exchange extremely serious and unacceptable, and a government spokesperson was quoted as saying, It is clear that historically and legally Senkaku is an inherent territory of Japan.. (51)At the July 2012 ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), Secretary Clinton said, We believe the nations of the region should work collaboratively and diplomatically to resolve disputes without coercion, without intimidation, without threats, and without the use of force.. (52)Although ASEAN has agreed on the elements of the Code of Conduct (COC), China stated that it would enter negotiations with ASEAN on the COC when the time is ripe. (53)A day following the conclusion of the ARF meeting on July 14, 2012, a Chinese naval warship ran aground while on patrol about 60 miles from the province of Palawan in the Philippines on Half Moon Shoal in the disputed Spratlys. (54)While the grounded warship was in the process of removing itself from the Half Moon Shoal a day later, Xinhua announced that 30 Chinese fishing boats, guarded by an official government ship, had set sail for the South China Sea. (55)On July 19, 2012, the Chinese Central Military Commission approved the establishment of the military defense and watch zone of Sansha at the division level. (56)On July 26, 2012, China then appointed a Chief Commander and a Political Commissar of the military defense and watch zone of Sansha. (57)On July 23, 2012, Philippine President Benigno Aquino III announced in his state of the nation address that the Philippines had purchased more than 40 military aircraft, including attack helicopters and two refurbished C–130 cargo planes, as well as a second former U.S. Coast Guard cutter. (58)In the nationally televised address before Congress, President Aquino stressed that he would not back down to Chinese pressure, saying I do not think it excessive to ask that our rights be respected, just as we respect their rights as a fellow nation in a world we need to share.. (59)A day earlier, on July 22, China’s Central Military Commission approved the deployment of a garrison of soldiers to guard Chinese claims in the Spratlys, the Paracels and the Macclesfield Bank. (60)On July 24, 2012, China declared a new municipality on Yongxing, or Woody Island, where the previously announced military garrison will be stationed. (61)A State Department spokeswoman said that the United States is concerned about such unilateral moves and wants to see all of these issues resolved at the table.