Beijing [China], October 29: China is believed to have continued to strengthen its control over the East Sea by preparing to deploy additional radar, anti-stealth surveillance and anti-ship missile systems on Tri Ton Island in the Paracel Islands.
Chinese media reported on the evening of October 27 that the country's southern theater command had just conducted a military exercise in the East Sea. It is unclear when the exercise took place, but its content included air defense, missile interception, and anti-surface ship attacks. Recently, the situation in the East Sea has been quite tense between Beijing and other parties.
Ambition to control vast seas
In that context, the British Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House) has just cited recent satellite images claiming that China is completing the infrastructure to deploy the SIAR radar system on Tri Ton Island in the Hoang Sa archipelago, which belongs to Vietnam's sovereignty but is illegally occupied by China.
With advanced technology capable of countering stealth aircraft, China has also installed SIAR radar bases on Hainan Island and Xu Bi Shoal, also in the Spratly Islands under Vietnam's sovereignty but illegally occupied by China. Therefore, if SIAR radar is established on Tri Ton Island, China can quickly increase its ability to control a large area in the East Sea. Specifically, connecting SIAR radar systems from Hainan Island in the north, through Tri Ton Island in Hoang Sa and finally Xu Bi in Truong Sa, Beijing has formed a radar chain stretching across the East Sea. Combined with existing surveillance systems, Beijing will be able to control a large area of ​​both the sea and the airspace in this sea area. All of this forms a belt of Beijing in the East Sea.
Not only that, according to images analyzed by Chatham House, China is also building infrastructure to deploy anti-ship missiles at Tri Ton. This also contributes to completing the missile chain that Beijing has established along the East Sea.
Multi-layered control
Assessing China's move on Thi Tu Island when answering Thanh Nien on October 28, Professor Stephen Robert Nagy (International Christian University - Japan, scholar at the Japan Institute of International Studies) said: "China is building up its capacity to counter stealth aircraft and other weapons that the US can deploy in the East Sea. Beijing wants to make the US and other countries worry when sending fighter jets or military ships into the East Sea."
"China's new move increases tensions in the region because it is considered to violate international law by carrying out many worrying actions . Moreover, China's move also puts pressure on other disputing parties in the East Sea and limits the participation of countries outside the region in the effort to balance the waters in this area," Professor Nagy further analyzed.
In fact, in recent years, along with increasing weapon deployment in the East Sea, China has also continuously expanded its control in the air, on the sea surface and under the sea.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper