Opinion | Are Beijing’s bold moves in the South China Sea mere opportunism amid Covid-19 or the new normal?

China’s renewed assertiveness may be driven by both domestic and external factors as Beijing seeks to bolster support at home for its tough security stance, while showing rival claimants and the US that maritime and sovereignty issues will not be sidelined amid the pandemic

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A protest in Manila last June after a Chinese vessel collided with a Philippine fishing boat, resulting in the latter’s sinking. A similar incident involving a Vietnamese fishing boat last month also sparked concern from Manila. Photo: AFP

Published: 9:30am, 7 May 2020Updated: 9:38am, 7 May 2020

Late last month, China’s creation of two new administrative districts and naming of 80 geographic features in the South China Sea created new wrinkles in its ties with other claimants. Both the Philippines and Vietnam protested against the latest administrative ploy.

A month before, China established two new research stations in the contested seas. In early April, a Chinese coastguard vessel collided with a Vietnamese fishing boat off the Paracel Islands, generating a furious protest from Hanoi and a statement of concern and solidarity from Manila.

At the same time, Beijing launched an eight-month maritime law enforcement campaign, code-named “Blue Sea 2020” that is likely to stir fresh tensions with other littoral states.

All these recent actions beg the question: is China capitalising on the pandemic or is it just business as usual? In the Asean-United States Foreign Ministers’ virtual meeting on April 23, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo accused Beijing of taking advantage of the situation to push the envelope further while the world is busy fighting Covid-19.

China’s renewed assertiveness may be driven by both domestic and external factors. Beijing may be looking for domestic praise for its tough security stance – showing no let-up in maritime or sovereignty issues even amid a pandemic.

This may, perhaps, help deflect or allay discontent over its initial mishandling of the outbreak in Wuhan. A backlash over Beijing’s attempts to wrest control of the coronavirus narrative has also contributed to a heightened sensitivity of criticism of its foreign policy.

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