US coastguard to play bigger role in curbing Beijing’s ambitions in the South China Sea
- Washington hopes to reduce burden on navy by asking coastguard to step up its activity in the disputed waters
- Commanders warn that budgetary constraints may limit their effectiveness
Washington hopes to give the US Coast Guard an increased role in the South China Sea as part of a drive to curb Beijing’s ambitions, but commanders warn that budgetary constraints may hamper the service’s effectiveness.
The US has long wanted to check Beijing’s maritime expansion, to prevent it from ultimately diminishing America’s sphere of influence in the Indo-Pacific region.
But analysts believe a big worry at the coastguard, the coastal defence and maritime law enforcement branch of the US, is that uncontrollable military spending may ultimately undermine its effectiveness in the region.
“The challenge is the coastguard budget because the budget is either defence or non-defence, and we sit in that non-defence pot of money,” Vice Admiral Linda Fagan, the service’s Pacific area commander, said.
Fagan said the coastguard receives funding support from the US defence department, capped at about US$340 million annually.
“As we’ve embarked on the capitalisation and recapitalisation of the new assets, our ability then to do the other things has gotten squeezed to a point where it’s really becoming untenable,” Fagan told the Sea-Air-Space conference in Washington on Monday, DefenseNews.com reported.
The US Coast Guard is already orienting itself towards China and expanding its presence in the region. The USCGC Bertholf, a maritime security cutter, visited Hong Kong last month, the first US coastguard visit in 17 years.
“The US Navy can’t be the only service that takes on the mantle of the operations in the contested area,” said Collin Koh, a military analyst from the S Rajaratnam school of international studies at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University.
“It’s not just the navy, marines and coastguard, but we also see the army and air force playing an increasing role … It will appear more sustainable in the long run to tap up other US armed services in order to cope with the Chinese challenge.”
US experts said the coastguard’s involvement signals Washington’s desire for stronger engagement in the region.
“It's just a question of all hands on deck,” said Sean King, a senior vice-president at political strategy firm Park Strategies.
“Beijing uses its navy, coastguard and even civilian fishing boats to push its agenda in Japan's Senkaku Islands and elsewhere … The US wants to ensure the South China Sea doesn't fall under any one country's dominance,” King said.
Chinese pundits said an escalation of tensions in the region seemed inevitable.
“If the US Coast Guard is used in the South China Sea, it would definitely imply a serious escalation of [the] Sino-US rivalry in the South China Sea,” said Zhang Baohui, director of the Centre for Asian Pacific Studies at Lingnan University in Hong Kong.
“China only needed to deal with the US Navy in the South China Sea. But now, China will also be seeing challenges from the US Coast Guard.”
Southeast Asian countries, especially those with competing claims in the South China Sea, are likely to welcome the US coastguard’s involvement in the region.
Southeast Asian countries want “peaceful settlement of disputes” but want to preserve a “rule-based order and freedom of navigation”, said Rajeev Ranjan Chaturvedy, a visiting fellow at the S Rajaratnam school of international studies.
“Perhaps, Washington is willing to play a much more active role in helping allies defend their maritime rights and ensuring a peaceful settlement of disputes.
“A policy with a clear message and more direct role for the US Navy-Coast Guard team could put more pressure on China to behave responsibly,” Chaturvedy said.
