US remark on disputes clumsy

The rhetoric is getting hotter among China, most of its Southeast Asian neighbors and the United States. This month, the US State Department took the unusual step of issuing a press statement, singling out Chinese behavior for criticism for creating a new administrative district that covers most of the disputed islets in the South China Sea. Chinese media have responded angrily, stoking the already high emotions among the Chinese public. Therefore, managing tensions and territorial claims that are inherently difficult to resolve has become more difficult.

Washington apparently did not intend the situation to deteriorate in this fashion. In 2010, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton spoke out against unilateral actions in the South China Sea and for the development of an effective code of conduct to govern rivals' activities in the area. It was widely understood to be a shove in China's direction to agree to a code of conduct and to restrain the aggressive actions of its fishermen and oil drillers. It was accompanied by American professions of disinterest in the specific territorial disputes. Instead, it insisted on freedom of navigation in the heavily trafficked waters and peaceful resolution of the disputes under international law.

China didn't like the US push then. But by the end of 2010, China was trying harder to get along with its neighbors and Clinton's remarks seemed to have done well. More recently, National Security Adviser Thomas Donilon visited Beijing (and Tokyo), which was well received by Beijing's highest leaders and seemed to put the discussion of thorny issues on a high-policy plane. Coming right after his visit, the State Department statement came as a real shock to Beijing.