Taking Part at Sea

　　China’s first involvement in RIMPAC presents a positive message of Sino-U.S. military cooperation

　　China sent a fleet to the Rim Pacific Exercise (RIMPAC) in June， marking the country’s first involvement in the world’s biggest marine military drill， headed by the United States. The drill has provided an opportunity for Beijing and Washington to enhance their military communication and mutual trust.

　　To reach the common goal of building a new-type relationship between major powers that can benefit world peace and stability， China and the United States should release more positive messages rather than animosity.

　　China’s debut

　　This year’s RIMPAC is held from June 26 to August 1 with participants from 23 nations.

　　According to Zhao Xiaogang， drill director of the Chinese fleet， the Chinese Navy is scheduled to participate in exchange events from June 25 to July 8， including press conferences， visits of warships， basketball and football matches and a 5-km cross-country race. During the maritime drills on July 9 to 30， the Chinese vessels will jointly conduct weapons firing， supplies sea-lifting， damage control， anti-piracy and disaster-relief operations as well as coordinated interceptions and landings， and joint assaults by warships and ship-borne helicopters， he said. With a fleet of over 1，100 naval soldiers and officers， the Chinese fleet is now the second biggest after the U.S. Navy in this year’s RIMPAC.

　　Zhang Junshe， a researcher with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Naval Military Studies Research Institute， pointed out that the scale and active involvement of the Chinese fleet indicate that military-to-military relations between China and the United States are building momentum since the summit attended by Chinese President Xi Jinping and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama last summer.

　　“The United States showed a good posture of ameliorating bilateral military relations，” said Zhang， adding Chinese and U.S. naval chiefs made a joint decision for the former’s involvement.

　　RIMPAC generally includes several levels. Core subjects， which are completed jointly by the U.S. Navy and its allies like the United Kingdom， Japan， Australia， South Korea and Canada， cover fields with actual combat like joint anti-ship and anti-submarine operations， integrated air and marine defense， joint air strikes and amphibious warfare. General subjects， which are conducted by nations that are neither enemy nor friend of the United States， focus mainly on nontraditional security fields like humanitarian assistance， maritime search and rescue， anti-terror and anti-piracy. Peripheral countries participate in subjects such as sea queuing， reviewing troops and telecommunications， while observers merely watch and emulate.

　　Zhao said that the Chinese Navy hoped to achieve three goals in the drill： To push forward the healthy and stable development of bilateral new-type military relations， to deepen professional communication and practical cooperation with navies of other nations， and to demonstrate the PLA’s determination and ability to protect world and regional peace， security and stability.

　　Deputy Commander of the Chinese Navy Xu Hongmeng stressed that China’s involvement in RIMPAC is an important part of efforts to build a new model of relations between China and the United States and their militaries.

　　Zhang believed that as China and the United States now have more chances to interact in the Pacific region， China’s involvement in RIMPAC is necessary to strengthen communication， prevent misjudgment and jointly protect regional peace and stability. “The U.S. side is showing a good gesture of communication， and China shows more confidence and openness by accepting the invitation，” said Zhang.

　　Military-to-military contact has long been considered as the weakest link in the China-U.S. relationship. The two sides have held frequent high-level exchanges， including the exchange visits by defense chiefs in 2013， a rare search-and-rescue exercise in Hawaii and a second joint anti-piracy drill in the Gulf of Aden.

　　More trust needed

　　China and the United States are the biggest developing country and the largest developed country， respectively， and their relationship is significant to world peace and stability. Therefore， developing bilateral military relations not only concerns these two major powers， but also benefits other countries in the world. Mutual trust cannot be established through a single joint drill. Both China and the United States should make more efforts and show more sincerity.

　　“The Chinese Navy accepted the U.S. invitation in accordance with the principle of building a new-type relationship between major powers based on non-conflict， non-confrontation， mutual respect and win-win cooperation. This decision will play an active role in promoting bilateral ties，” said Zhang. Besides， he added， the amelioration of bilateral military relations will prevent other countries’ attempts to create discord between the two major powers.

　　Liu Xuecheng， a researcher with the China Institute of International Relations， pointed out that China’s new leadership has expressed the goodwill of building a new-type relationship with the United States， so as to realize win-win cooperation in Asia and beyond. Liu said that in spite of differences and disputes between the two sides， China actively seeks communication and dialogue with Washington through current bilateral mechanisms. Now China’s participation in RIMPAC also demonstrates China’s active and open attitude toward promoting positive relations with the United States， said Liu.

　　Although China and the United States have both displayed forthrightness throughout the drill， it cannot be considered as a big breakthrough for their military relationship， said Li Jie， who is also a researcher with the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute. “We would prefer to see Washington completely abandon the Cold War mentality and end its old pattern of stick-waving deterrence，” said Li.

　　Li admitted that differences and disputes remain between the two major powers. He suggested establishing a mechanism and a related coordination scheme to effectively manage and control crises. The United States’ core strategy is to restrain the development of China’s national comprehensive and economic strength， so as to maintain its advantage over China in various aspects， said Li. However， Washington does not want serious conflict to break out between them either.

　　“The United States has realized through decades of practice at sea that military alliances along with traditional allies can reach only part of its strategic goal in the Pacific region， and it will be difficult to deal with affairs in the Pacific Rim without China’s active involvement，” said Li. He added that significant events in the region， like the nuclear issue on the Korean Peninsula， safe passage at sea， anti-terrorism， anti-piracy and humanitarian rescue missions will be fruitless without China’s participation. He noted the U.S. side will sustain its “contact-plus-containment” Cold War strategy， and cautioned China to stay calm.

　　Liu also identified a recent trace of Cold War mentality in the Obama administration. The U.S. side has criticized China on the Diaoyu Islands issue， and propagandized China’s military threat and military opaqueness. To implement its “pivot-to-Asia” policy， the United States raised military assistance by 30 percent and military training assistance by 40 percent to its allies in the Asia-Pacific region. It has scheduled 130 joint military drills in the region in 2014. By 2020， it will deploy 60 percent of its naval forces to the Asia-Pacific.

　　“The Asia of the 21st century is not the one of the 19th century. Asian countries are now masters of their own destiny，” said Liu， adding that an emerging Asia will be hard to stop.

　　“A U.S. leader with a long-term perspective should discard the fantasy of maintaining hegemony in Asia， and should instead become a partner， actively get involved in the cooperative process， and jointly build a peaceful and prosperous Asia with Asian countries， including China，” he said.

　　By Ding Ying

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