South China Sea: trade war between Beijing and Manila over disputed islands
Beijing (AsiaNews / Agencies) - China has
ordered the suspension of some tours to the Philippines and increased controls
on imports of food, particularly fruit: the clash between Beijing and Manila, over
disputed territories in the South China Sea ,
is turning into a real trade war, after weeks of bitter controversy. A
journalist from the Chinese state television during a news bulletin even
arrived at saying that "the Philippines
are in full territorial sovereignty of China" (see
the video on YouTube, at 1.35). It
was a glaring gaffe that sparked laughter from the web because the presenter confused
the whole archipelago with the Scarborough Shoal (Huangyan according to Beijing), a group of atolls located between the island of Luzon and the islands Zhongsha,
for weeks at the center of a dispute between the two Asia Pacific countries. China's
internet users have called him "a true patriot", Jia He apologized
through his blog for the error, but there were no official positions, or
retractions from CCTV bosses.
In
recent days, the tourist office in Shanghai has
ordered the "indefinite" suspension of travel to the Philippines. A
similar measure was taken by Ctrip.com, the national on-line agency citing
"security reasons" behind the decision. Also
for safety reasons, the Chinese Embassy in Manila has issued a warning to their fellow
citizens, over possible anti-Chinese demonstrations and protests. The
Agency for the control and food safety in Beijing
has ordered strict controls on imported fruit from the Philippines, in
particular with regard to bananas and pineapples.
However,
the decision should not have a major impact on the economy because Philippine
tourism from China
is 9% of the total, while exports of agricultural products does not exceed 12%.
In
any case, the commercial battle is just the latest step in a war in which so
far not a single shot has been fired, but that could have serious repercussions
on the regional balance. In
response to Beijing's warnings and vitriolic
editorials of newspapers in China,
the Philippine government announced that the U.S.
is ready to "protect" the nation in case of attacks in the South China Sea. But
the spokesman of President Benin Aquino would also like to point out that
"Manila
has no interest in the food supply".
The
clashes between Manila and Beijing in the South China Sea has been exacerbated
since April 8, when the Philippine Navy tried to block Chinese vessels that had
crossed the boundary that marks the portion of the sea that is the center of
contention. Hence
the intervention of Chinese warships, to protect the vessels and national "interests".
Since
then, there is a climate of tension in the area and diplomatic efforts put in
place by the international community have been to no avail.
Among
the nations of the Asia-Pacific region, China
is advancing major maritime claims in the South China Sea.
The
area is of strategic importance for trade and exploitation of oil and natural
gas, which is abundant in the subsoil. Competing
with the expansionist ambitions of Beijing are Vietnam, Philippines,
Malaysia, the Sultanate of
Brunei and Taiwan, coupled
with U.S.
strategic interests in the area. In
the area in recent months there have been several "incidents" between
naval vessels or boats fishing - in an area characterized by a thriving fish -
flying the flags of Beijing, Hanoi
and Manila.
.png)
