'China actions in SCS provoking reactions from Asian nations'

China's actions in the disputed South China Sea aimed at extending its sway in the region are provoking reactions from countries like India, Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines who are ramping up their defence spending, US Defence Secretary Ashton Carter told lawmakers today.
"It (Chinese actions) is having the effect of causing others in the region both to increase their own maritime defence activities, and to align them with the United States. Old allies, like Japan, South Korea, Australia and the Philippines, and then new partners, like Vietnam and India, that are working with us increasingly," Carter said during a Congressional hearing.

"So, the Chinese behaviour is having the effect of self-isolation, and it's also galvanising others to take action against it. That is a change in the strategic aspect that China presents to the region. We're determined to do what the United States has done for 70 years, which is to keep a peaceful and stable environment," he said.
Responding to a question, Carter acknowledged that China is placing great importance to developing a blue water navy.
"There was a time when the Chinese military was largely a land-based military. It was a military focused on defence of its own territory. Now, it clearly has the aspiration to extend its sway in the Pacific. And the United States policy there is, as it has been for 70 years, to remain the pivotal military power in the Asia-Pacific," he said.

"That is what our rebalance to the Asia-Pacific is about, that is why we're making all the investments in high-end naval warfare, undersea warfare, new kinds of weapons, new aircraft, joint strike fighters, long range strike bombers and so forth, in recognition of that," he explained adding that the US is not doing anything new in the region.

"The thing that is new is the Chinese -- and of course, there are some other countries that do some of this, but nothing on the scale of China -- exactly as you say, dredging and putting military equipment on," he said.

General Joseph Dunford, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said it is very clear to him that capabilities being developed by China are intended to limit US ability to move into the Pacific or to operate freely within the Pacific.
"We call that anti-access, aerial-denial capabilities. So, their developments in anti-ship capability, anti-aircraft capability, and then their blue-water navy are clearly intended to limit our ability. And that is why, in this particular budget, we have focused on capability development that allows us to maintain a competitive advantage versus China," he said.
"It's equally clear to me that on the trajectory that China is on today, were we to not maintain an investment profile, as outlined in the current budget, we would lose our competitive advantage over time, and find ourselves unable to adequately advance our interests in the Pacific," Dunford warned.