Ruffled feathers over the Kitty Hawk

The incident last week in which China initially denied a port call to the USS Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier and its escort group, and a separate incident in which two minesweepers were barred from seeking refuge from bad weather in Hong Kong, continue to roil Sino-U.S. relations.

On Tuesday, Adm. Timothy Keating, the top officer of the U.S. Pacific Command in Hawaii, gave a news conference. The Chinese Foreign Ministry also had something to say.

The transcript of what Keating said is available here (blocked within China). Here are two excerpts, beginning with Keating’s response to a question about the Kitty Hawk:

            ADM. KEATING: Thanks, Lita. I hope it's not an ongoing problem, and it shouldn't be an ongoing problem. This is a kind of a mundane, run of the mill -- I've been to Hong Kong, I don't know, I'll say six times in my career.  I've been at it a long time, but I've been to Hong Kong a number of times. It's one of the great liberty ports in the world. It's a terrific opportunity for sailors, Marines -- if there are some on board and to spend time with their families.   

            You all are aware the Kitty Hawk was close to making her port call. Families had flown down from Japan, hundreds of them, I'm told, and at the last minute the Chinese denied the Kitty Hawk battle group -- the carrier and several of its escorts -- denied them permission to come into Hong Kong.   

            This is perplexing. It's not helpful. It is not, in our view, conduct that is indicative of a country who understands its obligations of a responsible nation. There is little strategic benefits to it. There's a lot more downside than upside. So it's hard to characterize it in anything but a at least perplexing, if not troublesome, light.   

            I have had no conversation with any Chinese officials. We are in dialogue with OSD (Office of the Secretary of Defense) and State, and I've got a phone call in to our ambassador there. I've not yet been able to connect to Amb. Randt.   

            So, perplexing, troublesome. No direct contact with the Chinese. Would certainly hope that this is not indicative of future repeated denials. We'd like to get into Hong Kong. We want to engage in even discourse. I'm hoping to go to China in January. As you know, Secretary Gates was just there a couple of weeks ago. He had a good visit. So this denial in the very late stages of port visit planning is -- came as a surprise and it's of some concern to us.

            Question: To follow up, have there been attempts to contact the Chinese that they have rebuffed, or have they just been not successful, or no real overt effort yet? Can you sort of describe what types of efforts are being made and if the Chinese are simply refusing to explain?

            ADM. KEATING: I could not characterize it that way, Lilly. I have -- I personally as commander of Pacific Command have not initiated any phone call to Chinese military counterparts, and wouldn't, necessarily. It is more a State Department function, which is why I say I'm working to talk to Ambassador Randt. And I would leave that -- the high-level -- I'm not suggesting we would demarche, but activities such as that are much more in the State Department and Pentagon's line than they are ours here at Pacific Command. I've not spoken to our ambassador. I've got -- we're playing phone tag right now.   

            I don't think that there is anything calamitous about this or there would have been more direct back-and-forth action between officials from our government and their government. And as you know, the Chinese reversed themselves after the Kitty Hawk reversed itself, its battle group. The Chinese said: Oh, yeah, you know, the sun was in our eyes or something; you can come in. Well, it was too late by then.   

Later, Keating was asked about the two minesweepers seeking protection from an advancing storm in the Pacific. Here’s his response:

       ADM. KEATING: It's very unusual, one, to kind of get caught, but that's the way weather at sea can be. I've found myself -- on aircraft carriers, anyway -- in water, wind, sea conditions that even on a big aircraft carrier will get your attention.   

            Those two minesweepers were engaged in an operation, not against China but out in international water, and a storm blew up and they needed to get into a place of refuge. And, you know, Hong Kong's nearby and that's a great place to go. So for the Chinese to have denied those two ships, in particular, small though they may be, that is a different kettle of fish for us and is, in ways, more disturbing, more perplexing than the denial for the Kitty Hawk's port visit request.

            As it turns out, both the Patriot and Guardian remained unaffected. They suffered no damage. But this is a kind of an unwritten law among seamen that if someone is in need, regardless of genus, phylum or species, you let them come in; you give them safe harbor. Jimmy Buffett has songs about it, for crying out loud.   

            So this is an area that causes us a little more concern. And I think Gary Roughead had a couple words for you earlier. That is behavior that we do not consider consonant with a nation who advocates a peaceful rise and harmonious relations.

            So it causes us -- it gives us concern.

I can’t find a copy of Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao’s statement on the incident. But I see Bloomberg quoted from it earlier today. Here’s what Bloomberg said:

Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said in a statement today that all dockings by U.S. naval ships in Hong Kong must be “applied for in advance” and in accordance with the territory's laws. “In this case, the applications were not made in advance and in a timely fashion.”

Xinhua makes no mention of the back-and-forth but gives great coverage to the arrival of the Chinese missile destroyer Shenzhen in Tokyo for a four-day visit, casting it as a sign of "new vigor" in relations between Beijing and Tokyo. The story also fails to mention that Japan is the closest U.S. ally in Asia, and that many ships of the forward-deployed U.S. Seventh Fleet are based there.

Comments

[A B]

“In this case, the applications were not made in advance and in a timely fashion.”

That may be the case with the minesweepers.

What about the visit of the Kitty Hawk and its support ships? That was applied for months in advance.

How about the MOFA speaking the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

[Pffefer]

This incident shows the Chinese diplomatic corps and Chinese officials as a whole are not sophisticated as people believe they are. Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi explained to Bush today that the whole thing was a "misunderstanding", what a shame. They should have stuck to their decision and not reverse the course, and then casually apologized that somebody made a booboo. Either you want them there or you don't. Don't say you didn't want them there and only to slap yourself in the face later by saying "we did want them here". Yang Jiechi should resign.

I find Keating's comment out of line though: Who is he to comment on China's role that it wants to play (whatever that is)?

[Farsi]

If Iranian warships on it's way to South America suddenly face a massive storm at sea. the closest port is New York and the Iranian Warship request permission to call to port, or at least to drop anchor in the sound, would the US government allow them to do so?

[A B]

Farsi:

Short answer is yes.

The US is a superpower and do not fear a few Iranian (or Venezuelan, Cuban, North Korean, Syrian, etc.) ships.

That is not to say that the ships will not be watched closely and on any slight reason, be made to leave.

Maritime Law have pretty clear stipulations as to what rights warships have in entering territorial waters of another nation, plus provisions as to whether they are just warships (of neutrals) or warships of belligerents which have different rules.

I would have thought that providing such courtesies to the US or any other nation would have made China friends.

The other explanation is that the PRC/PLA is rather raw or sensitive from intrusions by spy vessels and other craft, including submerged submarines which violates the UN convention, for them to become ultra sensitive on this issue.

Even if that were the case, China could have gradually phased in new rules (and notified other nations in advance) of such changes.

Basically, China lost face.

Do you want to be a Chinese host with a reputation of being cheap and giving your guests nothing to eat?

[Lisa]

This spells trouble. No ifs, ands or buts.