By James R. Holmes
A common assumption among offshore-balancing proponents is that, even after withdrawing to North America, U.S. forces can always return to Europe or Asia in times of dire peril, tipping the balance against a hegemon. Faced with a domineering power or alliance, the logic goes, local allies will welcome Americans back—out of sheer self-preservation if for no other reason. All Washington needs to do is preserve basing rights and carry out the occasional combined exercise with local partners to expedite access.
A report from the Associated Press suggests otherwise. The Philippine and U.S. governments have been negotiating the terms of U.S. access to bases on Philippine soil. You’d think the talks promise smooth sailing for Washington. China claims “indisputable sovereignty” over most of the South China Sea, including waters nearly within sight of Philippine shores. It has already poached geographic features deep within the Philippine exclusive economic zone. And Chinese mariners have put steel—or is it cabbage?—behind Beijing’s claims, fortifying Mischief Reef, encasing Scarborough Shoal with China Coast Guard vessels, and menacing the hardy Philippine marines who man a rusty old hulk marooned at Ayungin Shoal to defend Manila’s jurisdiction.
Read the full story at The Diplomat