If China’s belligerence in the region is to be contained, India has to take the initiative and stand up for the others
For the past many years, China has been asserting its power in the contested waters of South China Sea. China is not ready to give up its policy of expansionism in South China Sea. Recently, there have been reports of China building up a concrete runway on an island in the South China Sea's contested waters that will be capable of handling military aircraft when finished, as shown by the satellite images taken by a US-based think tank. The runway on a reef in the Spratly Islands, an archipelago also claimed in part by Vietnam and the Philippines, could stretch to nearly 10,000 feet and expand China's influence in a region where at least six countries have overlapping claims. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong lei said the work at Fiery Cross reef was “lawful, justifiable and reasonable and does not target or impact on any other country”.
South China Sea is an extremely significant body of water in a geopolitical sense. It is the second most used sea lane in the world and is believed to hold huge oil and gas reserves beneath its seabed. China claims nearly all of the South China Sea, on the basis of lines drawn on Chinese maps published in the 1940s. This has locked it into disputes with several Southeast Asian neighbours. China wants to create its hegemony among its neighbours by using muscle power and doesn't want to abide by the 1982 United Nations Convention on the law of the Sea. Due to its policy of expansionism, China is having dispute with the majority of South-east Asian countries such as Vietnam (Macclesfield Bank and Spratly islands), the Philippines (Scarborough Shoal), Malaysia (Spratly Islands) and Brunei (Spratly Islands).
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations summits have always avoided directly blaming China for the ongoing tensions in South China Sea and have fallen short of issuing any statements against its expansionist policies. Asean has had a history of treading carefully on China over the South China Sea matter due to Beijing's immense trade and diplomatic leverage over individual members — and because not all the 10 member-states have maritime claims. In the 2012 Asean summit in Cambodia, divisions between the member countries triggered a tense debate at the Foreign Ministers' meeting, leading to an unprecedented failure to issue a final communique — the first such occasion in more than four decades. China is not agreeiable to signing a legally-binding code of conduct, which would build on a non-binding 2002 pledge by parties to respect freedom of navigation, resolve disputes through negotiation, and exercise “self-restraint”.
leaders of some Southeast Asian countries have expressed their concerns regarding China's expansionism in South China Sea. In a statement issued by Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesman le Hai Binh, it was said that the “construction by other countries in the Spratlys without permission from Hanoi was totally illegal and baseless”.
China's expansionist policy is a source of much discomfort to the security and stability of Asia. It can be stated that the economic powerhouse of the Asean community cannot be the only solution that can be some sort of benchmark for nations who fear the wrath of China — in terms of maritime activities, construction of airbases and ports. Since an economic blockade is not an option and economic inactivity is also ruled out, one should always exercise the option of looking for an alternative role model that has also played a very important part in the preservation of global-order and world peace.
Now that China is asserting itself globally — in terms of modified communism, capitalistic communism, military capability, economic power — the time has come for India to assert its role in terms of our democracy, civilisational heritage and cultural value system. India can play a greater role in maintaining peace and stability in the Asian region. India is a 5,000 year old civilisation that has always believed in the ‘one universal’ principle: Vasudhaiv kutumbakam. India, with its impeccable democratic and economic credentials, civilisational heritage and value-systems, fits the bill to emerge as an alternative to China's aggressive and expansionist mode of what can best of called ‘capitalistic communism’.
All the affected Southeast Asian countries should look up to India as an alternative role model and urge it to play a greater role in containing China. If India decides to play a greater role in the Asian region, then it could be a big answer to China’s repeated acts of discomforting other nations in the region.