US, China face-off in Taiwan Strait underscores urgency of de-escalation

It has been a fiery start for June in the Asia-Pacific, as two of its most powerful geopolitical players, the United States and China, face off on several fronts, threatening to drag the entire region into unwanted confrontation at a time when other parts of the world are already in hot conflict.

Just hours after US defence chief Lloyd Austin declared last Saturday, before an audience of top defence and security officials gathered in Singapore, that Washington DC "will not flinch in the face of bullying or coercion", his words were put to immediate test following a "near collision" involving American and Chinese ships in the Taiwan Strait.

The brief naval standoff highlights the urgency for world leaders to de-escalate tensions in the region, including dialing down both the rhetoric and activities that only serve to escalate the situation in the waters, officials and experts say.

According to the US military, the latest incident happened on June 3, when the Chinese Navy vessel identified as PRC LY 132, reportedly made an "unsafe" manoeuvre at a distance of only 137 metres (150 yards) from the US Navy destroyer, USS Chung-Hoon.

The US said its vessel was carrying out "freedom of navigation" in international waters alongside the Canadian frigate, HMCS Montreal.

As USS Chung-Hoon sailed through the 180-kilometre wide strait, the Chinese Navy guided-missile destroyer, also known as Luyang III, cut through its path in what appeared to be a deliberate move.

The near-miss was captured on video by HMCS Montreal sailing nearby. To avoid collision, the American vessel was forced to slow down, after which the Chinese vessel sailed parallel to it before drifting away averting a potential crisis.

The next day, Sunday, it was Chinese Defence Minister Li Shangfu's turn to take the stage at the Singapore security forum, and he never held back in laying the blame of the worsening situation on the US and its allies.

Li cautioned that any “severe confrontation” between the US and China could turn into an "unbearable disaster" for the international community.

Curiously, his statement echoed the warning of his American counterpart, Austin, who said a day earlier that a war over Taiwan would be "devastating...in ways we cannot imagine".

Li then pointed out that the US and allied ships navigating in the region are there not for "innocent passage", but rather "for provocation", overlooking Beijing's own heightened military activities in the same sea lane as well as in the adjacent resource-rich waters of the South China Sea.

“Why did all these incidents happen in areas near China, not in areas near other countries,” Li asked.

Then, addressing the most recent Taiwan Strait incident, Li said the US and Canadian vessels should not have been in the area in the first place.

"What’s the point of going there? In China we always say, 'Mind your own business,'" Li said, barely hiding his displeasure at the US, who in 2018 imposed sanctions against him for his role in Beijing's purchase of Russian military hardware.

In a clear sign of his hardline stance, Li had also earlier rebuffed Pentagon's request for him to meet with Austin on the sidelines of the Singapore event. The snub, however, was lamentable, Austin said, stressing the need "to engage more seriously on better mechanisms for crisis management".

"For responsible leaders, the right time to talk is anytime. The right time to talk is every time. And the right time to talk is now. Dialogue is not a reward. It is a necessity."

But Li never budged. Instead, he held bilateral talks with European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius and British Secretary for Defence Ben Wallace.

'The Taiwan question'

China's main contention on the Taiwan matter is that the island is a Chinese province and thus is part of its territory.

Consequently, Beijing says, Taiwan Strait is within its control and is not part of the international waters. Therefore, it has the right to police its sea lane, including driving away vessels especially those belonging to countries sympathetic to Taiwan.

In a statement, a People's Liberation Army (PLA) spokesperson Senior Colonel Shi Yi defended the recent action of the Luyang III destroyer, saying it "handled the situation based on laws and regulations".

"Relevant countries are deliberately stirring up trouble and risks in the Taiwan Strait, maliciously undermining regional peace and stability and sending wrong signals to the 'Taiwan independence' forces," he added.

China has never ruled out the use of force in taking back control of Taiwan, and its frequent military exercises, on air and at sea, and near and around the island, have only raised alarm among the Taiwanese population.

Washington DC is caught in a bind. While it has been adhering to the "One China" policy for decades, it also considers Taiwan as a close ally. The US government's Taiwan Relations Act requires Washington DC to provide the island "with arms of defensive character" and to "resist" any forms of coercion targeting the island's security.

The recent "freedom of navigation" exercises, which the US and its allies have carried out near Taiwan, is a clear manifestation of Washington DC's commitment to the island, experts said, and it is unlikely to back down despite Beijing's warnings.

As Collin Koh, an Asia-Pacific maritime expert at Singapore's S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, pointed out, the US is not expected to roll back its activities in the region because doing so "might portray a wrong signal about its security commitments to the region, especially to regional allies and partners".

Koh also told TRT World that he expects Beijing to show the same attitude, as it "will not wish to demonstrate weakness" regarding its position in the region because doing so "would be detrimental from domestic politics and external signalling reasons".

Path to de-escalation

It is not the first time that the US and China figured in a face-to-face confrontation in Asia-Pacific this year.

In May, the United States Air Force accused a Chinese J-16 fighter jet of carrying out an “unnecessarily aggressive manoeuvre” by flying directly in front of a US spy aircraft over the South China Sea.

China said the US plane “deliberately intruded” into its training area, although it was clear that the incident happened in international airspace.

Given the reality that both the US and China are unwilling to scale down their activities, particularly in the Taiwan Strait as well as in the South China Sea, it is essential for both nations "to engage in their existing confidence and security-building mechanisms" to avoid in the future incidents such as the Taiwan Strait encounter that could quickly spark a wider conflict, said Koh, the Singapore-based foreign policy expert.

The 1998 Military Maritime Consultative Agreement, for example, provide guidelines for the US and China on air and sea interactions between their forces, and both should adhere to it, he said.

Both countries and their allies should also abide by other regional guidelines, such as the Code for Unplanned Encounters at Sea (CUES), Koh added.

There are some indications that both Washington DC and Beijing are listening to fair-minded voices.

It was reported earlier this month that the director of the CIA, William Burns, had visited China in May.

On June 5, it was announced that Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Daniel Kritenbrink and NSC Senior Director for China and Taiwan Affairs Sarah Beran held "candid" and "productive" with senior officials in Beijing.

And the next day, it was announced that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to travel to China in the coming weeks after postponing his trip in February following the "spy balloon" incident.

Speaking at the closing of the Singapore security forum, 1996 Nobel Peace Prize winner and Timor-Leste President Jose Ramos Horta echoed calls by other Asian leaders to find ways to manage their rivalry.

"We earnestly hope that the US and China manage their economic, trade, scientific, technological and influence-seeking competition with serenity and wisdom so as not to weaken themselves as credible deterrents and guarantors of peace and stability in Asia and beyond," he stressed.

In an indirect dig at the US, Ramos Horta said "outside powers should refrain" from making statements and actions on Taiwan "that are considered provocative and contrary to the clearly established reality of one China policy".

But he also did not spare China, saying that the growing militarisation and the "building of artificial islands for military purposes" in the South China Sea create "mistrust, mutual suspicion, escalates tensions and risks confrontation".

He was referring to Beijing's expansion of artificial islands that could accommodate naval and aerial vessels.

South China Sea, Horta said, should be declared a "Zone of Peace and Cooperation, free of permanent military facilities, and all must observe the provisions" of the United Nations on the exclusive economic zones.

It is still too early to say whether the contending parties would heed Horta's message or not.

As the Philippine Coast Guard's Commodore Jay Tarriela said during the same Singapore security forum, actions matter more than words.