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As China piles pressure on the neighboring Philippines to cede ground in the South China Sea, a nonpartisan congressional research institute has given the United States a list of options to support its oldest ally in Asia, including military avenues that may lead to a direct confrontation.
Beijing's intensifying efforts to dislodge Manila from one of its outposts in the Spratly Islands archipelago "raises the possibility of a crisis or conflict involving China, the Philippines, and potentially the United States," the Congressional Research Service's December 13 report said.
The U.S. and Philippines share a 72-year-old Mutual Defense Treaty, which requires American forces to intervene in the event of an "armed attack" on the Philippines, including in the energy-rich South China Sea.
The outpost in question is the BRP Sierra Madre. A group of Philippine Marines is stationed aboard the dilapidated yet still active warship off tiny Second Thomas Shoal.
The vessel—previously in service with the U.S. Navy as tank landing ship the USS Harnett County, before it was transferred to the Philippine Navy—was deliberately grounded in 1999 to support Manila's claim to the low-tide feature, which falls within the Philippines' exclusive economic zone, or EEZ.
Beijing now routinely seeks to block supply runs to the Sierra Madre. Missions this year have seen collisions and near-collisions between the two countries' maritime forces.
The Chinese coast guard has been accused of temporarily blinding Philippine crews with a military-grade laser, and more recently were filmed firing water cannons, whichManila said disabled a supply boat's engine.
China maintains the Sierra Madre violates its sovereignty, citing unspecified historical rights to all of the South China Sea's 250 islands, and that the Philippines has reneged on an alleged pledge to remove the rusting vessel.
Beijing has further accused Manila of becoming a U.S. pawn by "hyping up" the territorial dispute, which has had the effect of drawing more support from traditional U.S. allies in the West.
With a view to supporting the Philippines' defense of its EEZ—a sovereignty right granted by international maritime law—the CRS report's authors presented military and non-military options to U.S. policymakers.
The boldest among them included sending American troops to the Sierra Madre to back up their Philippine counterparts, or dispatching U.S. Navy escorts to aid the ally's "defensive missions."
Both options could raise the risk of a clash between American and Chinese forces, the authors said.
Less risky alternatives included increasing military assistance and training to the Philippine Coast Guard, "expanding U.S. force posture in the region," and working in concert with other aggrieved claimants in the South China Sea.
Vice Adm. Andrew Tiongson, the commander of the U.S. Coast Guard Pacific Area, said in September that the two countries enjoyed an "outstanding relationship," the report noted.
On the diplomatic front, the U.S. Congress could consider the merits of ratifying the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, or UNCLOS.
The U.S. frequently appeals to an international tribunal's legally binding ruling in 2016 that dismissed China's claims in the Philippines' EEZ. Ratifying UNCLOS, on which the tribunal's decision was based, would strengthen Washington's position on maritime law.
In a possibly unprecedented escalation last week, dozens of Chinese militia ships and lingering coast guard vessels were seen in and around Second Thomas Shoal in a move to assert territorial control, echoing China's takeover in 2012 at another disputed feature in the Philippine EEZ.
In a letter to U.S. President Joe Biden on October 25, Sens. Jim Risch (R-ID), ranking member on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee; Roger Wicker (R-MS), ranking member on the Senate Armed Services Committee; and Marco Rubio (R-FL), ranking member and vice chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, requested a full list of options to "support the Philippines and ensure the supply of the BRP Sierra Madre."
The U.S. has provided the Philippines with staunch political backing and offered intelligence support during its resupply runs, but it has not yet indicated whether more military assets would be deployed to the area as a direct result of the escalating standoff.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not respond to Newsweek's written request for comment by publication time.
About the writer
Micah McCartney is a reporter for Newsweek based in Taipei, Taiwan. He covers U.S.-China relations, East Asian and Southeast Asian ... Read more