US playing dirty tricks again in the South China Sea

The latest move by the United States administration to target Chinese personnel and enterprises over the South China Sea issue once again reveals the ugly hegemonic face of Uncle Sam.

But Washington should not indulge the dream that Beijing will be coerced into swallowing the bitter fruit of damage to its core interests.

In an apparent decision to up the ante in its confrontation with China, the US State Department announced on Wednesday that it is imposing travel bans on some Chinese officials and business executive for their role in the so-called militarization of the South China Sea.

The US Commerce Department also said that it had added 24 Chinese State-owned Chinese enterprises, including subsidiaries of the China Communications Construction Company, to its Entity List for their roles in constructing artificial islands in the waters.

Although "completely unreasonable", as a spokesperson for China's embassy in Washington said, such is the US administration's fondness for sanctions as a way to strut its stuff in making "America great again" that it seems it cannot go a week without announcing some new ones.

Island building by countries in this area has been going on for years, and China is a latecomer to the practice. Despite Washington's claims, freedom of navigation in the waters has not been affected in any way. Indeed, as shown by a number of mishaps involving US naval vessels, it is the increasingly frequent appearance of flotillas of US warships in the waters that presents a hazard to other shipping.

Although the US move will have limited impact on Chinese enterprises and personnel, China should consider countermeasures to the blatant long-arm jurisdiction of the US.

By making waves again in the South China Sea, the US administration may want to shirk its own responsibility for its slow and ineffective response to the novel coronavirus pandemic. It may also want to divert domestic attention from the ongoing anti-racism uprisings at home.

Yet it is unreasonable and immoral for the US to stir up trouble on another country's doorstep. The US meddling in the South China Sea is especially malicious as the maritime disputes have been largely eased thanks to the mutual efforts of China and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

China and the 10-member bloc are in the process of finalizing the text for a Code of Conduct in the South China Sea, with an aim of safeguarding peace and stability in the waters. The US move is obviously intended to fan up the maritime disputes again so as to drive a wedge between the two sides and prevent the code from being completed.

The US will fail in these endeavors. The China hawks in Washington should not underestimate China's resolve to safeguard its sovereignty and territorial integrity, nor the shared will of countries in the region to ensure the South China Sea is a sea of peace, friendship and cooperation.