Why is China Creating Artificial Islands in the South China Sea?

judgment I am operating with due regard as required under international law what do you do when traditional geopolitical strategies no longer suffice in asserting dominance over a contested region China's answer lies in the Advent of geoengineering reshaping the regional landscape to bolster its hybrid Warfare strategy particularly within its neighborhood a prime example of such techniques is the creation of artificial Islands which have significantly strengthened China's capabilities and raised the stakes in the geopolitics of the South China Sea they don't appear on most world maps but China's artificial islands are an important sector of the globe that world powers are anxiously keeping watch over the South China Sea has been a hotbed of tensions for the past two decades due to China's illegitimate's claims over the majority of this crucial Waterway neighboring countries that share Maritime borders with china such as the Philippines Vietnam Brunei Malaysia Indonesia and Taiwan contest these claims the stakes are high as these nations risk losing access to their exclusive economic zones rich in minerals and hydrocarbons moreover many countries are unwilling to compromise on the principle of freedom of navigation considering that almost 60 percent of global Maritime trade traverses the South China Sea China's recognition of the Region's geostrategic importance has prompted us to engage in aggressive activities such as constructing artificial Islands on the reefs and other features under its control these man-made Islands serve as military bases for the people's Liberation Army Navy and support China's anti-access area denial strategy which seeks to deter external military intervention in the contested Waters beijing's continued construction of these islands despite the international criminal court of justices 2016 ruling against China's claims over the South China Sea demonstrates its flagrant disregard for international law these islands threaten the sovereignty of other nations undermining the maritime buffer between the Indian and Pacific Oceans China has been working tirelessly to establish a nearly impenetrable anti-access anti-denial Zone encompassing the vast majority of the South China Sea the development of extensive infrastructure on these artificial land masses is a critical component of this strategy in addition to short-range weapons China has also deployed long-range systems on some of these islands the infrastructure is evidently designed to discreetly house these mobile systems when they are inactive or not on high alert allowing for the rapid deployment of additional capabilities as needed China builds artificial Islands through a process called land reclamation which involves dredging and depositing sand sediment and sometimes Rock to create new land in Shallow Waters they select shallow water areas typically around reefs atolls or other natural features in the South China Sea dredging ships also known as dredgers are employed to collect sand and sediment from the sea floor these ships use large rotating cutter heads to break up the seabed material which is then sucked up through a pipe and deposited on the desired location the dredged material is pumped onto the selected area gradually building up layers to create an artificial land mass this process can take several months or even years depending on the size of the island being constructed as the layers of sand and sediment accumulates they are compacted and stabilized using various techniques such as the placement of large rocks or the construction of sea walls to prevent erosion once the artificial island is stable China builds infrastructure like air strips ports military installations and communication facilities to serve its strategic objectives in the region as of 2018 China has reportedly created over 3 200 Acres or approximately 13 square kilometers of new land in the disputed spratly islands and the actual amounts may be higher as their activities continue it's important to note that the construction of artificial islands has raised environmental concerns as it can cause significant damage to fragile marine ecosystems particularly coral reefs additionally these activities have intensified territorial disputes in the South China Sea as several countries have competing claims over the Region's resources and strategic waterways as we've explored China's bold geoengineering efforts in the South China Sea we're left with a pressing question should any country be allowed to build artificial Islands or lands to enforce their policy can such actions be justified or do they undermine global stability and cooperation this controversial issue has sparked heated debates and raises concerns about international law environmental consequences and the balance of power we'd love to hear your thoughts on this matter please join the conversation in the comments below and discuss the implications of these artificial islands and the future of the South China Sea don't forget to like share and subscribe for more pressing Global topics foreign

Channel: Interesting Engineering

Views: 57,807

Keywords: engineering, science, technology, interesting engineering, interesting, china, anti-access, area-denial, south china sea, infrastructure, artificial islands, land reclamation, dredging, sand, sediment, rock, shallow waters, reefs, atolls, natural features, dredgers, sea floor, cutter heads, pipe, landmass, months, years, long-range systems, short-range weapons, rapid deployment, capabilities, high alert, mobile systems, extensive infrastructure, impenetrable zone

Id: 1TAPq-hciLo

Length: 6min 28sec (388 seconds)

Published: Sat May 27 2023