US using Asia Pivot to thwart China's rise: American pundit

The United States has launched its so-called “Pivot to Asia” strategy in order to impose its hegemony and thwart China's peaceful rise, an American academic and political analyst says.

Dennis Etler, professor of Anthropology at Cabrillo College in Aptos, California, made the remarks in an interview with Press TV on Wednesday while commenting on a statement by US President Barack Obama who called on China to stop land “reclamation” and construction in the disputed South China Sea.

The US president arrived in Manila on Tuesday, opening a six-day diplomatic tour in Asia that is expected to be focused on the region’s long-standing disputes and more immediate concerns about terrorism roiling the Middle East and Europe.

The United States accuses China of undergoing a massive “land reclamation” program in the Spratly archipelago of the South China Sea by turning reefs into artificial islands to bolster its claims.

Obama on Wednesday met with Philippine President Benigno Aquino III on the sidelines of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Manila where he and his Philippine counterpart discussed the impact of China’s construction projects on stability of the Asia-Pacific region.

“US President Obama at the recent Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in the Philippines demanded that China cease and desist from land ‘reclamation’ and construction in the disputed South China Sea. He has also committed to supply countries in the region with increased military aid, including naval vessels to the Philippines,” Professor Etler said.

“His disingenuous and imperious command will however fall on deaf ears. The People's Republic of China is not alone in claiming sovereignty over the South China Sea. Both Vietnam and Taiwan make equally broad claims and have also built up artificial islands. China sincerely believes that its claims are justified both by historic precedent and international law. It has taken a stand from which it will never back down nor abandon,” he added.

“On the other hand, China did not vigorously assert its sovereignty over the South China Sea until the US announced its ‘Asian Pivot’ in 2011 and said that it was allocating a significant amount of its military resources, both sea and air, to the region. There should be no doubt that it is US actions that have precipitated Chinese national security concerns and led to the reclamation and reinforcement of islands under its control. Other nations had done likewise prior to China doing so,” Mr. Etler stated.

Pivot to Asia, a challenge to China's vital interests

The Obama administration is trying to keep its focus on a widely advertised shift to Asia, which it has pursued since 2011. The White House argues that no region is more important to the United States’ long-term interests than Asia.

“The US feigns that its ‘Asian Pivot’ is purely economic and diplomatic, but in actual fact it is primarily military and a direct challenge to China's vital national interests, especially protection of the sea lanes that pass through the South China Sea upon which China relies on for its essential imports and exports. It is China that is most likely to have its rights of free navigation interdicted by the US during times of crisis not vice versa,” he noted.

“The US is using this artificial crisis to fish in troubled waters, to exacerbate tensions and forge an anti-China coalition. It is using imperialism's favorite tactic of divide and rule in order to impose its hegemony and thwart China's peaceful rise. This must be exposed and opposed. Let China and its neighbors settle their own affairs. The US should stay out of the dispute,” Professor Etler concluded. 

Washington accuses Beijing of rapidly building up to 800 hectares (2,000 acres) of artificial islands in the Spratlys, an archipelago of more than a hundred islands, reefs and atolls between Vietnam and the Philippines.

Beijing claims sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea, which is also claimed in part by Taiwan, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines.

The disputed territories, which are located in the main shipping routes passing through the South China Sea, are believed to be rich in oil and gas.

Over the past months, tensions have escalated between China and its neighbors over the territories, including the Spratly Islands. The United States has taken sides with its allies against Beijing.

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