Asia-Pacific Maritime Security Strategy
WASHINGTON, August 21, 2015 — The United States has spelled
out its maritime security strategy so that all nations understand the American
position, David Shear, the assistant secretary of defense for Asian-Pacific
security affairs, said during a Pentagon news conference today.
The U.S. will continue to use diplomacy, multilateral
institutions and continued engagement to protect free and open access to
maritime Asia, while focusing on safeguarding the freedom of the seas,
deterring conflict and coercion, and promoting adherence to international law
and standards, Shear said.
And he reemphasized previous statements by U.S. officials
that the United States takes no position over competing claims for land claims
in the South China Sea and the East China Sea.
“We have a vested interest in ensuring that the claims are
resolved peacefully and without conflict or coercion,” Shear said, adding,
“however, there are several trends -- including rapid military modernization
growing resource demands and territorial maritime disputes -- which have the
potential to create instability in this vital region.”.
China’s expansion of disputed features and artificial island
construction in the Spratly Islands is a concern, he said.
“While land reclamation is not new, and China is not the
only claimant to have conducted reclamation, China’s recent activities outweigh
other efforts in size, pace and nature,” he said.
DoD Investing in Capabilities in Asia-Pacific
Shear made it clear the United States will maintain the
necessary military presence and capabilities to protect U.S. interests and
those of allies and partners against potential threats in maritime Asia.
The United States, he said, is strengthening its military
capacity in the region to deter conflict and coercion and respond decisively
when needed.
“DoD is investing a new cutting-edge capability, deploying
our finest maritime capabilities forward, and distributing these capabilities
more widely across the region,” he said. As Defense Secretary Ash Carter has
said, “the United States will continue to fly, sail and operate wherever
international law allows, as U.S. forces do all around the world,” Shear said.
The United States will continue working with allies and
partners across the region to build their maritime capacities.
Leveraging Defense Diplomacy
“We’re building greater interoperability and developing more
integrated operations with our allies and partners,” he said.
U.S. officials are leveraging defense diplomacy to build
greater transparency, reduce the risk of miscalculation or conflict and promote
shared maritime rules of the road, Shear said.
U.S. officials are working with Chinese leaders and with
regional officials to put risk reduction measures in place, he said. There is
already an agreement for ship-to-ship encounters, Shear noted, adding that he
hopes to see an agreement for air-to-air encounters by the end of the year.
The United States is working to strengthen regional security
institutions and encourage development of an open and effective security
architecture, Shear said. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is an
increasingly important DoD partner, he said, and the department is working
closely with that organization.
“Through these venues, we aim to promote candid
conversations about ongoing challenges in the maritime domain and encourage
greater information-sharing and cooperative solutions,” he said.
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