China's Island Factory

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Posted by Soulskill on Tuesday September 9, 2014 @08:45AM from the built-to-order dept.

An anonymous reader writes: The BBC has a lengthy investigative report about China's efforts to create and expand artificial islands in the South China Sea. They've been going to coral reefs and atolls, dredging the bottom for material, and dumping it on top of the reef to create new land. On at least one of the new islands, China will build an air base large enough for fighter jets to use. This highlights one of China's main reasons for constructing these islands: sovereignty and strategic control of the surrounding area. "The U.S. government does not acknowledge China's claim, and the U.S. Pacific fleet continues to sail regularly through the South China Sea. But the Chinese navy is beginning to grow more assertive. In December 2013 China sailed its brand new aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, into the South China Sea for the first time. Shadowing it, at about 30 nautical miles, came the U.S. Navy cruiser USS Cowpens. A Chinese amphibious assault ship approached and ordered it to leave the area. The commander of the Cowpens refused, saying he was sailing in 'international waters.'"

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Might want to tighten the bolts on those sabers by i+kan+reed · 2014-09-09 08:49 · Score: 3, Insightful

They're rattling an awful lot.
1. Re:Might want to tighten the bolts on those sabers by ebno-10db · 2014-09-09 09:14 · Score: 4, Insightful
  
  Building artificial islands in contested waters is rattling the sabre a lot more than just sailing a few ships through it.
2. Re:Might want to tighten the bolts on those sabers by Yalius · 2014-09-09 10:24 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  Wrong. The 200 mile zone is an "exclusive economic zone," not territorial water. Territorial waters only extend 12 miles out. Any ship can navigate within the 200 mile zone, just can't harvest any materials or sea life. As long as the Cowpens wasn't fishing or mining, it was free and clear.
3. Re:Might want to tighten the bolts on those sabers by Registered+Coward+v2 · 2014-09-09 11:07 · Score: 5, Insightful
  
  International law on these issues is anything but clear, and are subject to a great deal of argument, which is why there are always contested areas.
  As for the UK, it's a natural island that has been inhabited by the same peoples for centuries (at the least - you can argue about 1066). Now that's clear.
  International law, as put in practice for centuries, is pretty clear: as long as I can beat the crap out of you I can sail wherever I want.
  
  --
  I'm a consultant - I convert gibberish into cash-flow.
Cowpens by ZombieBraintrust · 2014-09-09 08:52 · Score: 3, Insightful

So apparently there is some poor town named Cowpens where a battle occured. At least it wasn't named after a person. That would be a terrible last name.
Bald Simians! by Anonymous Coward · 2014-09-09 08:55 · Score: 5, Insightful

They've been going to coral reefs and atolls, dredging the bottom for material, and dumping it on top of the reef to create new land.

Destroying fisheries in the process. But hey! They can just go into international waters and fish there - it's not like the World's fisheries are in trouble or anything.

A Chinese amphibious assault ship approached and ordered it to leave the area. The commander of the Cowpens refused, saying he was sailing in 'international waters.'"
Some day, we bald apes are going stop our petty squabbles.
Nah! Who am I kidding.
Re:Hypocrits by jlockard · 2014-09-09 09:31 · Score: 4, Insightful

To an extent, not exactly the same. When the US annexed/took-over Hawaii the US didn't claim all land between the US coast and Hawaii as US waters. My "I haven't checked Google to be sure" guess is the waters within 100 miles of the US west coast and a 100 mile circle around Hawaii are the only waters declared as US waters.

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--JLockard - "Some mornings, it's just not worth chewing through the leather straps." - Emo Phillips
Re:By Country by rogoshen1 · 2014-09-09 10:03 · Score: 4, Insightful

Against who exactly? We have air bases just about everywhere, ICBM's , long range bombers etc.
They're huge slow(ish) moving, crazy expensive floating cities that could be made irrelevant with a salvo of cheap, dumb missles. (aegis be damned) They're dreadnoughts waiting for their Taranto.
Re:By Country by rmdingler · 2014-09-09 10:06 · Score: 3, Insightful

Two reasons come to mind.
Military/Industrial Complex and show of force in many theatres.
And they're really friggin' hard to build on short notice

--
Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know.
Ernest Hemingway
Re:China's nine-dashed line by ericloewe · 2014-09-09 10:38 · Score: 3, Insightful

They looked over at their russian neighbors and noticed that spreading bullshit around was surprisingly effective in claiming new territory for fun and profit.