US-China encounters in the Indo-Pacific getting increasingly close

South Korea scrambled fighter jets after Chinese and Russian military aircraft entered its air defense zone in the south and east of the Korean Peninsula. The incursion followed encounters between U.S. and Chinese forces in the Taiwan Strait and South China Sea, which the Biden administration cites as examples of growing aggressiveness on the part of Beijing’s military. Voice of America Chief White House correspondent Patsy Widakuswara looks at the rising tension between global powers playing out in the Indo-Pacific. At least two incidents of close encounters between Chinese and American vessels and aircraft in less than two weeks, including this Chinese warship on Sunday cutting closely in front of a U.S. destroyer in the Taiwan Strait. The incident coincides with trilateral naval exercises in the South China Sea among the U.S., Japanese and Philippine coast guards. Wang Wenbin Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeperson The U.S. made provocations first, and the Chinese side only responded by handling the incident in accordance with relevant laws and regulations. Since you have disregarded our warning, we will take all the necessary measures on you. Encounters between Chinese and other nations’ vessels, such as the Philippines, have increased in recent years, along with Beijing’s military activity in the region. The U.S. is also adopting a more muscular approach, ramping up drills with allies in the region. Beijing considers these provocations, leading to even more incidents that could easily escalate into conflict. Zuri Linetsky Eurasia Group Foundation It’s part of a new and, and disturbing norm, particularly given the fact that there’s limited communication between high-level defense officials in the United States and China. The White House denies it’s partly to blame and says it’s trying to talk to Beijing. John Kirby National Security Council spokesperson We’re working on this very, very hard, and the president is confident that we’ll be able to get back to the spirit of Bali between the PRC and the United States. At the annual Shangri-la Dialogue in Singapore last week, Beijing declined Washington’s request for a face-to-face meeting between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu, due to sanctions on Li that have not been lifted by the administration. Officials are working to reschedule U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s visit to Beijing that Washington canceled after it shot down a Chinese spy balloon in January.