- U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris said that China is coercing countries in the South China Sea.
- She rebuilt her relationship with Asia in the region.
- Harris insisted that the United States is committed to its allies in the region.
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris accused Beijing on Tuesday of intimidating in disputed waters as she tried to seek Asian allies to oppose China and improve the credibility of the United States after the chaotic withdrawal of Afghanistan.
Her remarks in Singapore come at a time when Washington seeks to rebuild Asian relations after the turbulent era of Donald Trump and build a fortress against the rise of Beijing.
Read | Kamala Harris visits Singapore to deepen relations and counter Chinese influence
But her visit to the region, including a stay in Vietnam, is facing new problems with its reliability as Washington withdraws from Afghanistan and the Taliban takes over.
In a speech expounding his government’s foreign policy goals, Harris reiterated Washington’s “enduring commitment” in Asia — and aimed at China.
She said: “Beijing continues to coerce, intimidate and claim sovereignty over most of the South China Sea.”
“Beijing’s actions continue to undermine the rule-based order and threaten national sovereignty.
“In the face of these threats, the United States stands with our allies and partners.”
Claim
China has sovereignty over almost all resource-rich sea areas, and trillions of dollars of shipping trade passes through these sea areas every year. Four Southeast Asian countries and Taiwan have also put forward competitive propositions.
Beijing is accused of deploying a series of military equipment there, including anti-ship missiles and surface-to-air missiles, and ignoring the 2016 International Tribunal’s ruling, which declared its historic claims over most of the waters to be groundless.
In recent months, tensions between Beijing and opposing claimants have escalated.
After hundreds of Chinese ships were found in the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, Manila was angry, while Malaysia urgently dispatched fighter jets to intercept Chinese military aircraft that appeared off its coast.
Harris is a senior official in the administration of US President Joe Biden’s recent visit to the region. During his visit to Singapore in July, Pentagon Director Lloyd Austin also strongly criticized China’s maritime claims.
But the Afghan crisis and doubts about the credibility of the United States are casting a long shadow over Harris’ visit.
In a speech on Tuesday, she defended Biden’s decision to promote the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, calling him “brave and correct” and reiterated that US officials were “very concerned” about the chaotic evacuation at Kabul Airport.
Before heading to Hanoi, she will hold talks with business leaders in Singapore on supply chain issues, including the global shortage of microchips, later on Tuesday.
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