US senator: Freedom of navigation ops in South China Sea long overdue

MANILA, Philippines – United States Senator John McCain on Wednesday (Philippine time) welcomed the decision of US President Barack Obama to allow the US Navy to conduct Freedom of Navigation operations in the South China Sea.

“I am pleased the US Navy has finally been allowed to conduct Freedom of Navigation operations within 12 nautical miles of China’s manmade land features in the South China Sea. This decision is long overdue. And I have been dismayed, though hardly surprised, as this administration’s apparent confusion and indecision has played out before the world over the last several months,” McCain said.

McCain said the US must not exempt China from its operation as it is allowed by the international laws.

“As China mounts increasingly routine challenges to the freedom of the seas throughout the Asia-Pacific region, it is more important than ever that the United States fly, sail, and operate wherever international law allows. And the South China Sea must be no exception,” McCain said.

On Tuesday, the guided missile destroyer USS Lassen started to sail within the 12-nautical mile territorial limit of one of China’s artificially built group of islets in the South China Sea.The FON operation commenced after internal debates within the Obama administration. The US destroyer was accompanied by two maritime surveillance aircraft, P-3 Orion and P-8A Poseidon.

The FON operation was opposed by China, arguing that the action damaged the US-China relations and regional peace. It also triggered an angry protest from Beijing.

Meanwhile, China’s Foreign Ministry said authorities monitored and warned the USS Lassen as it entered the Subi Reef, alleging that the US Navy threatened China’s sovereignty and security interests with its move.

McCain, however, claimed that the FON operation must not be considered as an irregular operation but an ordinary action to defend the freedom of the seas.

“Going forward, Freedom of Navigation operations should not be sporadic spectacles to behold, but ordinary and consistent demonstrations of our nation’s commitment to uphold the freedom of the seas,” McCain said.

“Demonstrating this unwavering commitment will require regular air and naval patrols in the weeks and months ahead and the robust forward presence in the Pacific required to sustain them,” the senator added.

The Subi Reef in the Spratlys Islands archipelago is also being claimed by the Philippines.