VietNamNet Bridge - Former Deputy Minister of Defence, Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh, confirmed that Chinas construction activities on islands in Vietnams Truong Sa Archipelago (Spratly Islands) aim at military targets, laying the foundation for implementation of the "China dream".

China is turning Johnson South Reef into an artificial island. Photo: DSPL

China is building artificial islands in order to change the status quo of the Gac Ma (Johnson South) Reef and some areas in the Spratly Islands of Vietnam. What do you think about Chinas latest moves?

Former Deputy Minister of Defence, Lieutenant General Nguyen Van Rinh: Johnson South is actually a reef of the Sinh Ton (Sin Cowe) Island in the Spratly Islands of Vietnam. This is a brown reef, surrounded by a white coral belt. Only a few stones float on the sea and most of the reef is underwater. The Johnson South Reef is over 3km southeast of Vietnams Co Lin (Collins) Reef and marks the southwestern tip of Sin Cowe Island. In 1988, China used force to illegally seize Johnson South Reef of Vietnam.

Chinas declaration of improving the reef to serve people's lives is ridiculous because this is the new island, which is still under construction so it is it impossible to have civil activities there. According to satellite images, the building activities on the reef are on a large scale to form a floating island. In my opinion, the main goal of China still aims at military goals.

This is part of the long-term strategy: claiming Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratly) Islands of China and laying the groundwork for the next steps, which is extremely dangerous to realize the "China Dream" and the U-shaped line claim.

Why does China choose Johnson South Reef to build a floating island and what threat will it pose?

Rinh: According to the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), countries cannot claim sovereignty over underwater reefs and "the reefs that do not sustain human settlements or do not have economic life will not have the exclusive economic zone or the continental shelf." Chinas new moves in the East Sea aim to turn the Johnson South Reef into an inhabited island to claim sovereignty.

On the other hand, the position of Johnson South Reef is very important for defense and military. If a military base is built there, it will control the entire military operations in the Spratly Islands of Vietnam. It is a threat to peace and security not only in the East Sea but also the entire Asia - Pacific.

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