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SINGAPORE — American President-elect Donald Trump remained defiant on Sunday (Dec 18), taking to social media to shoot back at Beijing even after it promised to return an underwater drone seized from an American navy vessel operating in the disputed South China Sea, underlining the tense state of bilateral relations between the two super powers.
“We should tell China that we don’t want the drone they stole back - let them keep it!,” said the President-elect to his more than 17 million Twitter followers early on Sunday as he continued to slam China’s actions after it promised to return the equipment.
He had earlier tweeted that: “China steals United States Navy research drone in international waters - rips it out of water and takes it to China in unprecedented act.”
Naval expert Collin Koh told TODAY that the incumbent American administration and the US defence, naval and intelligence communities would certainly not take the episode lightly.
“One cannot just seize the equipment and impound it. The drone technology would not really be so sensitive as to severely undermine US military advantages in the undersea domain. But it is nonetheless still a sovereign piece of equipment that once seized, would be expected to be returned,” he said.
Ms Yun Sun, a Senior Associate with the East Asia Program at the US-based Stimson Center said the episode will have long term implications for US-Sino relations.
“The event is widely interpreted as Beijing’s retaliation/ reaction to Trump’s position on Taiwan. Beijing is unlikely to take a conciliatory approach when it sees its core interest infringed upon by Trump,” she said.
“If Trump chooses to push back further during his presidency, we will see a vicious cycle of escalating tension.”
Beijing claims most of the energy-rich South China Sea, through which about US$5 trillion (S$7 trillion) in ship-borne trade passes every year. Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan and Vietnam also have claims.
The US has criticised what it called China’s militarisation of its maritime outposts and stressed the need for freedom of navigation by conducting periodic patrols near them, angering Beijing.
Bilateral relations were further affected after Mr Trump took a protocol bending telephone call from Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen on Dec 2 - the first direct communication with a Taiwanese leader by a US President or President-elect since President Jimmy Carter switched diplomatic recognition to China from Taiwan in 1979, acknowledging Taiwan as part of “One China”. He also questioned whether the US should continue its “One China policy” unless Beijing makes concessions on trade and other issues such as the South China Sea and North Korea.
In a sign of tensions boiling over in the disputed waterway, the Chinese navy on Thursday seized the drone, which the Pentagon claimed was being operated by civilian contractors to conduct oceanic research. The US lodged a formal diplomatic complaint and demanded the drone back. Beijing has complained that Washington hyped up the incident.
Chinese Defence Ministry spokesman Yang Yujun issued a statement late Saturday saying that a Chinese navy lifeboat discovered an unknown device in the South China Sea on Thursday.
“In order to prevent this device from posing a danger to the safe navigation of passing ships and personnel, the Chinese lifeboat adopted a professional and responsible attitude in investigating and verifying the device,’’ Mr Yang said.
The statement said that after confirming that the device was an American unmanned submerged device, “China decided to transfer it to the US through appropriate means.”
The Chinese side has yet to respond to Mr Trump’s latest tweet.
Analysts told TODAY that China’s speedy promise to return the drone is an indication that Beijing wants the issue to be resolved quickly.
“China has accomplished what it intended to accomplish, either to prevent the drone from tackling Chinese submarines or to send a strong signal to the US on the South China Sea issue. So now it is in China’s interests to cool down the conflict,” Professor Zhang Baohui from the Department of Political Science at Hong Kong’s Lingnan University told TODAY.
Ms Irene Chan, an associate research fellow at S Rajaratnam School of International Studies’ (RSIS) China Programme noted that China has achieved a lot with respect to the South China Sea over the past four years, including pushing America’s boundaries over Chinese reclamation in the disputed areas and defying the ruling of an international tribunal which invalidated its expansive territorial claims.
“Provoking the US is probably the last thing they (the Chinese) wish to do. The Chinese would rather want peace and stability to consolidate their gains and concentrate on other more pressing issues such as economic restructuring and development,” she said.
Bernard Loo, an associate professor at RSIS’ Institute of Defence and Strategic Studies added that the speed at which China has stated it will be returning the drone suggests that strong words were said by Washington on the issue behind close doors. “I suspect China has been chastened somewhat by this episode.” AGENCIES WITH ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY JASON TAN