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China To Deploy Military To Sansha
July 22, 2012, 9:08pm
MANILA, Philippines — China will establish a military presence in its newly established city of Sansha, which covers a vast expanse of the flashpoint South China Sea (West Philippine Sea) including islands within the Philippines’ territory.
In a news report posted on Chinese government website gov.cn, Beijing announced that its central military authority “has approved to form and deploy a military garrison in the newly established city of Sanshaâ€.
The online report posted Saturday said China’s Central Military Commission (CMC) had authorized the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Guangzhou Military Command to set up the garrison.
The PLA refers to China’s unified military force and is also the world’s largest with three million members.
“The garrison command will be a division-level command under the PLA’s Hainan provincial sub-command, responsible for managing the city’s national defense mobilization, military reserves and carrying out military operations. The PLA’s Sansha Garrison Command will be under the dual leadership of the Hainan provincial sub-command and the city’s civilian leaders,†the report stated.
China has also just recently begun forming a legislative body for Sansha which in turn will create a government for the new city.
According to Beijing, Sansha City administers over 200 islets, sandbanks and reefs in Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha islands, covering 13 square kilometers in island area and two million square kilometers of water.
The Philippine government, through a Note Verbale issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to Chinese Ambassador Ma Keqing last June 28, had protested the formation of Sansha.
DFA said it is protesting the inclusion of Kalayaan Island Group (KIG) and Bajo de Masinloc (BJM) under China’s new prefecture.
Both of KIG and BJM are within the Philippines’ 200-nautical mile Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), as provided under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) to which Beijing is a signatory.
The Philippine government first established a municipality covering nine islands, sandbars and reefs in KIG back in 1978, the Department noted. Mayor Eugenio Bito-onon heads the municipality, which is considered part of Palawan.
China’s decision to send its military to Sansha came at the heels of a statement from its Foreign Ministry spokesman expressing Beijing’s willingness to quell tensions at the volatile waters through the implementation of a code of conduct, being a dialogue partner of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
“The Chinese side is willing to work together with the ASEAN members to implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) comprehensively and effectively,†Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei said.
