McCain's Statements on the Diaoyu Islands Can Only Create Confusion

According to media (as reported by Xinhua on Aug. 22), U.S. Senator John McCain has called the Diaoyu Islands “Japanese territory,” saying China is encroaching on Japan's fundamental right to the islands. He also advises countries who have received maritime threats from China to coordinate together. What was China's response? Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hong Lei stated that the Diaoyu Islands are Chinese territory and all claims against this basic fact are futile, advising American officials to stop these irresponsible statements in order to prevent other problems and territory disputes from escalating further.

The Diaoyu Islands are China's by law and history. The Diaoyu Islands are a natural extension of the mainland into the Okinawa Channel that “appear suddenly” in the East China Sea, which can be investigated through scientific data. In addition, according to rules in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, China's possession of the Diaoyu Islands is an indisputable right. In history, the islands were first discovered, named and governed by the Chinese. They appeared in Chinese territory maps in the early Ming dynasty.

Yet, because of necessary strategic benefits, the dispute is not only a dispute between China and Japan, but America's shadow is also being cast into the affair. The U.S. has officially maintained an “unbiased” position; this increases the value of its decisions. Statements are made with cautious words so as not to provoke China's claim to the islands; only then can the U.S. carry out its own military movement. Given that, Senator McCain's statement that the Diaoyu Islands are Japan’s is a hard attitude for the U.S. to officially take. Since he aims to promote his own intentions for America, his position and target are clear. He is trying to press Obama into a confrontation with China.

The other day, Minister of Defense and State Councilor Chang Wanquan went on a friendly visit to the U.S. For the first time, he and U.S. Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel held a conference and reached a lot of agreements. Both sides used this conference to establish new military relations and build good opportunities. They also announced that this November, the first humanitarian relief and disaster mitigation joint military exercises would be held in Hawaii, and China and the U.S. would also lead the 2014 Pacific Rim military exercises.

These announcements show that at the very least, the U.S. does not completely regard China as a hostile country. Although in the last few years America has been progressively shifting its strategic focus to the Asia-Pacific region, the changes are always made in order to prevent confrontation with China. From the outside, China has been constantly deciphering major U.S. strategic shifts. America’s Asia-Pacific shifts mostly involve Southeast Asian countries, the most important area for increasing U.S. military infiltration into the Western Pacific.

When making new moves, the U.S. cannot afford to have enemies lest its strategic shifts come under attack. This is especially true with China, a country whose words carry serious weight and important influence in the international community. America will not easily make any strategic miscalculation. Therefore the U.S. deals in related conflicts with a vague attitude and makes moves to prevent a stand-off with China, which is also a U.S. Asia-Pacific strategic move. If it really is as McCain says, that the U.S. “support[s] Japan in the Diaoyu Islands matter,” then all U.S. Asia-Pacific strategy processes would come to a halt. This would not be in the interest of the U.S. because it would then naturally put an end to future plans.

On his trip to the U.S., Chang Wanquan visited the North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command in Colorado. He also visited Cheyenne Mountain’s NORAD alternate command center nuclear bunker, dubbed the “most heavily guarded defense in the world.” This demonstrates that the U.S. is showing an “open military” to ease Chinese wariness. Given that, McCain's words come across even more as self-notions, as he can only express his personal opinion unrelated to official U.S. policy.*

We must look closely at the details of what political capacity Republican John McCain has. In 2008, he competed against Obama in the presidential election and lost. Being of different heritage, race and political party, of course McCain and Obama view opponents differently. So McCain's statements that “China has violated Japan's rights to the Diaoyu Islands,” “those who have received threats from China's navy must cooperate,” etc., come across as McCain making political moves in U.S. foreign affairs, trying to stick Obama with a difficult situation.

If the U.S. government criticizes McCain, there would be backlash and resistance from McCain's group, lowering Obama’s favorability on domestic issues. If the U.S. government does not criticize McCain's statements, then Obama has to meet Chinese statements head-on, which would make Obama's cooperation seem strained to the Chinese. This doesn't benefit the progress of Chinese-U.S. relations; after such statements, Chinese-U.S. negotiations would lack “conscious respect of basic rights,” giving America’s Asia-Pacific strategy future negative impacts.

*Translator’s Note: As far as official records show, Chang Wanquan’s visit to the NORAD bunker was planned, but ultimately did not happen.