Wall Street Journal: China's war hawks are blocking improved relations with America

The Wall Street Journal warned in an editorial that the risk of conflict in the Western Pacific is increasing due to China's relentless quest to control the region.

She said the White House was required to maintain calm while preparing for a "more aggressive" response if the Chinese Communist Party continued to strain the situation.

The risk of conflict is growing with increasing Chinese provocations to the United States, the newspaper said, adding that a war in the Western Pacific would be a disaster for the world. She called on what she called "war hawks" in China to understand that continuing their provocations will make it difficult for the US administration to cling to efforts to find a breakthrough in the current situation.

Provocations

Among those provocative attempts was the recent flight of a Chinese fighter jet near a U.S. reconnaissance aircraft flying in international airspace in the South China Sea.

She also talked about the approach of a Chinese ship a few days ago to a US destroyer that was crossing the Taiwan Strait, and said that the event increased tension between Beijing and Washington, as while the United States believes that these patrols are necessary to maintain the principle of freedom of navigation, China has always maintained that the strait is its territorial waterway, and no one has the right to pass through it.

The Wall Street Journal also noted that Beijing ignored Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's request for a meeting with his Chinese counterpart Li Shangfu on the sidelines of Singapore's annual security conference last week, where the U.S. official criticized China's opposition to such military contacts that help reduce misunderstandings.

Defend

The newspaper said the tensions came despite a recent secret visit by CIA Director William Burns to China to calm the situation.

Through its practices, China may aim to persuade the White House not to sign a law imposing new restrictions on investment in China, where such an option has been previously floated but has not yet been issued. A Chinese newspaper has warned the United States against passing such a law.

According to the Wall Street Journal, China also wants the United States to lift the sanctions it imposed on Defense Minister Li Shangfu in 2018 after completing a purchase of aircraft and combat equipment from Russia.