Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, Admiral John Aquilino, has denounced China’s operations in the South China Sea, characterising them as a destabilising attempt to obtain territory by force. The acts of China against the Philippines, especially at Second Thomas Shoal, were emphasised by him as “dangerous, illegal, and destabilising.” Aquilino voiced his worries about the rising hostilities, mentioning instances in which sailors were hurt. He also mentioned China’s comparable moves in Malaysia and Japan, which point to a larger trend of forceful unilateral territorial expansion.

A top U.S. admiral stated on Tuesday that China’s actions in the South China Sea were an illustration of its attempt to expand its territory by force and were destabilising the area.

China and the Philippines have experienced a number of

In a speech to the Lowy Institute think tank in Sydney, Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command Admiral John Aquilino declared that China’s actions against the Philippines, especially in Second Thomas Shoal, were “dangerous, illegal, and they are destabilising the region.”

Aquilino expressed his “great concern about what is happening at Second Thomas Shoal,” where six seamen had been hurt as a result of physical altercations between a fishing vessel and the Chinese coast guard.

“So what’s next and how far are they willing to go in that area?”

He claimed that Malaysia and Japan, among other countries in the area, were witnessing comparable Chinese actions.

“The PRC (People’s Republic of China) is attempting to expand its territory; this is not an isolated incident.

China maintains that its responses to Philippine aggression have been reasonable and claims practically the whole South China Sea as its domain, patrolled by an armada of coastguard warships, more than 1,000 km (620 miles) from its mainland.

Since the leaders of the two nations had spoken, Aquilino added, there has been excellent progress in the U.S.-China relationship and no worrying maritime contacts between the two nations.

Aquilino expressed his concern that China’s efforts to stabilise its economy would make this détente only short.

Concerning what he claimed to be synchronisation between Russia and North Korea and China, he also voiced his concerns.

“Those sets of cooperation and the linkages are really a new world and a concern,” he stated.

He claimed that China was using economic pressure in the Pacific Islands and that the United States and Australia were collaborating to concentrate on boosting development funding to the area, particularly the Solomon Islands, which had signed a security agreement with China.

“An increased military presence in that region is a direct threat to Australia as it applies to homeland defence and it doesn’t put the U.S. in a good position either,” he stated.