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Major General Luo Yuan, deputy secretary general with the PLA Academy of Military Sciences, explained the reasons why China is opposed to the US-South Korean military exercises in the Yellow Sea in a recent online discussion with netizens on People's Daily Online.
Luo pointed out five reasons behind China's opposition to the joint military exercises:
First, in terms of security, Chairman Mao Zedong once said, "We will never allow others to keep snoring beside our beds." If the United States were in China's shoes, would it allow China to stage military exercises near its western and eastern coasts? Just like an old Chinese saying goes, "Do not do unto others what you do not want others to do unto you," if the United States does not wish to be treated in a specific way, it should not forcefully sell the way to others.
Second, in terms of strategic thinking, China should take into account the worst possibility and strive to seek the best results. The bottom line of strategic thinking is to nip the evil in the bud. The ultimate level of strategic thinking is to subdue the enemy without fighting. Preventing crisis is the best way to resolve and overcome the crisis. China's current tough stance is part of preventive diplomacy.
Third, in terms of geopolitical strategy, the Yellow Sea is the gateway to China's capital region and a vital passage to the heartland of Beijing and Tianjin. In history, foreign invaders repeatedly took the Yellow Sea as an entrance to enter the heartland of Beijing and Tianjin. The drill area selected by the United States and South Korea is only 500 kilometers away from Beijing. China will be aware of the security pressure from military exercises conducted by any country in an area that is so close to China's heartland.
The aircraft carrier USS George Washington dispatched to the Yellow Sea has a combat radius of 600 kilometers and its aircraft has a combat radius as long as 1,000 kilometers. Therefore, the military exercise in the area has posed a direct security threat to China's heartland and the Bohai Rim Economic Circle.
Fourth, in a bid to safeguard security on the Korean Peninsula, the UN Security Council has just issued a presidential statement, requiring all parties to remain calm and restrained to the so-called "Cheonan" naval ship incident, which had caused a major crisis on the Korean Peninsula.