December 3, 2013

IN TOKYO, BIDEN BLAMES CHINA FOR RAISING TENSIONS IN NORTHEAST ASIA

Posted by The Himalayan Voice:
[The United States and Japan have continued to make military flights through the air defense zone in defiance of China’s declaration. But reports that the Federal Aviation Administration had cautioned U.S. commercial airlines to comply with China’s regulations to provide flight information before entering the zone have led some in Japan to question the Obama administration’s position.]

By David Nakamura

TOKYO — Vice President Biden on Tuesday declared that the United States is “deeply concerned” by China’s establishment last week of an air defense zone over a disputed territory in the East China Sea, a message aimed at reassuring U.S. allies while leaving negotiating room as Biden heads to Beijing on Wednesday.

Biden blamed China for raising regional tensions with Japan and South Korea, which the vice president warned would “increase the risk of accidents and miscalculation” in the wide flight path above the Senkaku Islands. But he stopped short of demanding that Beijing withdraw its declaration.

“We, the United States, are deeply concerned by the attempt to change the status quo in the East China Sea,” Biden said during a joint appearance with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, after the two met for wide-ranging security and economic talks.

His remarks, which echoed a written interview Biden granted the Asahi Shimbun newspaper this week, were Biden’s first public comments on the dispute in the East China Sea since arriving in Japan on the first stop in a week-long trip to Northeast Asia. The Obama administration hopes the trip will help ease mounting tensions at a time when it has sought to refocus its foreign policy agenda to the fast-growing region.

The United States and Japan have continued to make military flights through the air defense zone in defiance of China’s declaration. But reports that the Federal Aviation Administration had cautioned U.S. commercial airlines to comply with China’s regulations to provide flight information before entering the zone have led some in Japan to question the Obama administration’s position.

Biden pledged to Abe that he would raise the U.S. concerns directly with Chinese leaders, including President Xi Jinping, in Beijing during meetings scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday. He finishes his trip with two days in Seoul before returning to Washington on Saturday.

“The United States has an interest in lowering tension in this vital region,” Biden said. He said the conflict has raised the need to establish a “crisis management” protocol between Tokyo and Beijing, along with better communication between the two countries.

Abe said that he and Biden, who met in the presence of aides and then privately, had “confirmed that we should not tolerate this attempt by China to change the status quo unilaterally by force. We will work closely dealing with the situation.”

China declared control of an “air defense identification zone” above the Senkaku Islands that has long been administered by Japan. The move immediately drew sharp denunciations from the Japanese, as well as objections from Obama administration officials, including Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and Secretary of State John F. Kerry.

The Federal Aviation Administration advised U.S. commercial airlines to comply with China’s declaration by filing notice of flight plans with the Chinese out of an abundance of caution, which Obama administration officials described as standard guidelines for air defense zones around the world and not a contradiction of the administration’s position.

Japanese officials ordered the country’s carriers to proceed as normal. And some media reports in Japan speculated that Biden and Abe would agree on a written pact or statement calling on China to withdraw its declaration, but Biden aides said such an agreement was never under consideration.

The aides said the White House believes that China’s move was “provocative” and that China is to blame for initiating the standoff. They said Biden will ask China to exercise restraint in enforcing the air defense zone to avoid accidents or miscalculations and to avoid creating new air defense zones in other places — such as the South China Sea, where China is competing for influence with Southeast Asian nations — without first discussing the move with potentially affected countries.

Though it remains highly unlikely that China would agree to withdraw its air defense zone, Biden’s message was designed to give the U.S. negotiators room to try to ensure that the Chinese will not enforce the requirements with aggressive military reactions or inflammatory rhetoric. Taking a more strident tone might have risked angering the Chinese, with whom the United States is attempting to forge new trade and business relationships, making a diplomatic solution to the security crisis less likely.

“The aim is being clear and consistent with China and Chinese leaders about our alliance [with Japan and South Korea], the strength of our alliances and commitments, regarding behavior that is destabilizing,” said one senior administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private talks. “We’ve constantly said relations with China are a balance of cooperation and competition. We need to grow the cooperative elements, but it’s important that when we have disagreements with the Chinese, to be clear about them and help them understand there will be a cost to their actions.”

Christopher Johnson, a China analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the Obama administration’s message to China has been confusing. He pointed to State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki’s statement this week calling on China to “rescind” some elements of the air defense zone.

“That does not seem to sync with the VP’s milder comments today emphasizing crisis management and confidence-building measures, with no mention of ‘rescinding’ anything related to the zone,” said Johnson, who is in Beijing for a conference. “This is sure to be very confusing for the Chinese, as they may be uncertain about what to expect.”

Administration aides said Abe accepted Biden’s position on the air defense zone. The aides emphasized that most of the two men’s discussions focused on other matters, including the final negotiations of the Trans-Pacific Partnership that the administration has hoped to wrap up this year. The 12-nation trade pact includes Japan and Korea, but not China.

During a working dinner after their meetings, U.S. and Japanese officials had a long discussion about Iran, with the Americans aiming to further enlist the Japanese, who have had a better relationship with the Iranian regime, to help informally in negotiations over the country’s nuclear program.

Concluding his remarks, Biden cited received wisdom from his father, who he said had told him that “the only conflict worse than an intended one is an unintended one.” Biden added, “The prospect of miscalculation is too high.”

When asked, officials noted that Biden’s vice presidential jet, Air Force Two, would not be flying through the disputed flight path, which is farther south than the direct paths from Tokyo to Beijing and Seoul.