A hornet’s nest

The Indian Navy is all set to deploy in areas of the West Philippine Sea where the country apparently has some oil and gas exploration already being conducted. So according to one of their naval officials, they have the right to protect their interests in the light of China claiming everything there is on the sea! India is also one of those countries who protested that erroneous map that the new Chinese e-passport has on its pages. I never knew that India also had territorial issues with China, which showed on their now infamous map. What were they thinking?

China has also announced a board and search policy that they will conduct on shipping vessels that will enter “their” territory! A territory most probably based on that map they came out with! So aside from their usual territorial differences with us and the majority of ASEAN, they also have issues with Taiwan, South Korea, Japan, Russia and India! That’s like stirring up a hornet’s nest and waiting for an aggressive move on their part! Is this what China wants? Is this what China had in mind? A domination of a region, by force? The last time someone did something similar, it was in Europe and Asia in the years of 1939-1945! Yes, ladies and gents, World War II!

China plans to implement the board and search policy this January 1. Is this the fireworks they had in mind of setting of? What many countries call unreasonable, unhelpful and definitely illegal doesn’t seem to matter to the Chinese in power, especially their military, who just might want to test their new toys on some perceived hapless country like some in ASEAN. It ha s always been stressed that the freedom of navigation in the West Philippine Sea is of utmost importance to the world, as it is a major shipping route of many countries involved in trade. And now here comes China saying that they will, block, board and search, turn back or even detain ships they feel entered their “territory” illegally! It is just asking for trouble!

It really is time for the world to intervene. Even those countries claiming to be neutral have a stake on the freedom of these shipping lanes. The economies of many countries depend on it. Is China actually thinking of putting up a toll gate of sorts, before ships could safely pass? I believe it is time for some sense to be brought into all of this, and not the usual double-talk where politicians and officials say one thing, while the military does another. Not only is this whole issue absurd, it is beginning to become awfully dangerous.