US provocative move will beef up tensions in the waters

Since last week, US military officials and government spokespersons have raised their tone about sending the US warships within 12 nautical miles of the islands where China has recently done reclamation work in the South China Sea. Their provocative comments have once again beefed up tensions in the waters.

To justify its move, the United States has not hesitated to use "freedom of navigation" as a pretext. It even went further and wrongly criticized China's reclamation work as "militarization" of the waters.

With its high-profile interference in the South China Sea, Washington is trying to achieve several purposes: dressing up Uncle Sam as a defender of "freedom of navigation" in the disputed waters, reinforcing the US' role as a responsible power which is helping small countries like the Philippines to stand up to the "bullying" Chinese, and last but not least, throwing mud at China and playing up the "China threat" cliche, so the US can implement its strategic rebalancing to Asia in a bolder manner and further consolidate its military presence in the region.