Obama urged to boost military ops in South China Sea

US Republican congressmen have urged President Barack Obama to order more military operations near disputed territories in the South China Sea, despite China’s earlier condemnation of the US militarization of the region.

The US Navy has increased its sailing near disputed islands as part of its so-called “freedom of navigation” operations over the past few months.

Republicans told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday that the Obama administration should make such operations more regular.

"I don't (know) why we are not doing it weekly, or monthly," said Committee Chairman Senator Bob Corker while referring to the presence of 60% of US warships in the Pacific region.

The Tennessee senator noted that China is a geopolitical rival for the United States. "Merely managing differences with China is not a successful formula particularly when such management cedes US influence and places American interest at risk in the Indo-Pacific and beyond," he said.

Senator Cory Gardner also said the current plan of deploying warships to the region every three months "is simply insufficient to send a strong message to China."

Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken agreed with the congressmen, saying Beijing risked “conflict, instability and isolation” in the region unless it clarified claims on the territories based on international law.

"As long as the United States remains fully present in the region, any tactical advantage that China derives from some of these outposts will be vastly outweighed by the net effect of surrounding itself with increasingly angry, increasingly suspicious neighbors who are increasingly close to the United States," he said.

This as China has repeatedly condemned such US naval patrols as “the real militarization” of the region.

The South China Sea has become a source of tension between China, the US, and some regional countries who are seeking control of trade routes and mineral deposits there.

ME