A Study Of The China-US FON Dispute In The South China Sea

In recent years,the China-US“freedom of navigation”（FON）dispute has in intensified in the South China Sea（SCS）,which is well illustrated in the following three aspects:In the legal aspect,the two countries have different interpretations of the FON-related clauses in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea（UNCLOS）.The Untied Stated holds that the“freedom of navigation”of the flag State in the exclusive economic zone（EEZ）of another country is the same as that on the high seas,while China insists that the FON of other countries in the EEZ of the coastal state is relatively limited.In the military aspect,the United States maintained its high-frequency“freedom of navigation operations”（FONOs）in China-claimed territorial waters.In particular,when Trump took office,the United States has carried out FONOs for four times;the frequency is far more than that of the Obama administration.In addition,the United States has also frequently implemented close-in reconnaissance and military survey activities and conducted joint military exercises with its Asia-Pacific allies in the SCS region.In response to the US military operations,China has tried its best to prevent the US ships and aircraft from entering its territorial waters by means of diplomatic protest,following,monitoring,warning and even intercepting the US ships or aircraft.In the diplomatic aspect,the United States has hyped up China’s efforts to protect maritime rights and the so-called FON issue on different occasions,while China has made its clarifications on different diplomatic occasions and has made statements to oppose US FONOs in China’s territorial waters in the SCS.The increasingly escalating FON dispute has its specific background.Since the beginning of the 21^st century,China’s rapid rise has attracted worldwide attention.China has basically realized its rapid economic development,vigorous military modernization,active neighborhood diplomacy,and substantial increase of comprehensive international strength as well as international influence,which has caused strategic anxiety of the United States.In response,the Obama administration proposed the“Asia-Pacific rebalance”strategy,and took the FON issue as its touchstone to implement the strategy,the purpose of which is to curb the rapid rise of China by means of law,military operations and diplomacy.The strategic competition between China and the United States in the Western Pacific Region has been intensified accordingly.In essence,the root of the China-US FON dispute lies in the competition of the strategic interests between the maritime hegemonic power and the rising maritime power in the SCS.It has two fundamental strategic contradictions:one is the contradiction between the US maritime hegemony and China’s territorial,energy and military security;the other is the contradiction between US hegemonic space and China’s development space.All in all,the China-US dispute is caused by the structural contradictions of the two countries.Therefore,the dispute is characterized by multilateralism,complexity and severity.As for its trends,the China-US FON dispute will tend to be more profound;the third parties will tend to be more diversified;and the FON operations will tend to be more regularized.Therefore,the negative effect of the continuous escalation of the China-US FON dispute will influence bilateral relations,regional situation and even global landscape.In terms of bilateral relations,the FON dispute will worsen the security dilemma and enlarge mutual trust deficit;in terms of regional situation,the FON dispute will exacerbate regional tensions and hinder regional economic development and cooperation;as for global landscape,the FON dispute will break the geopolitical balance and change the global security landscape.The China-US SCS FON dispute has become an interfering factor,which is difficult to be eliminated in China-US relations.If the FON dispute is continuously escalating,it will be likely to cause crises.Therefore,strengthening maritime crisis management has become an important issue in China-US relations.In order to avoid misperception and decrease risk,China should improve the maritime crisis management mechanism,and establish a“1 plus 3”crisis management model which will cover both peacetime and crisis time.