当前位置：主页 > 孝感 >

逆水寒

Why China is carrying out construction at Lingyang Jiao: Experts cite sovereignty, livelihoods and public services_我的网站

A |

Aerial view of Lingyang Jiao Photo: XinhuaSome foreign media have recently renewed hypes over China's construction at Lingyang Jiao in the Xisha Qundao (Xisha Islands), claiming that the completed first phase could become part of China's "largest military base" in the region.
China has firmly rejected such hypes. "Xisha Qundao is China's inherent territory, over which there is no dispute. Necessary construction on our own territory is aimed at improving living and working conditions on the islands and growing the local economy," said Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian at a regular press conference on March 23.
Despite that clear explanation, some foreign media outlets continued to point their finger at the Chinese reef. Why is China carrying out construction at Lingyang Jiao, and why do external parties have no grounds to reproach? Chinese experts recently spoke with the Global Times about the history, purpose and legal basis of the construction on the reef.
Indisputable sovereignty
Lingyang Jiao, whose name comes from its resemblance to an antelope horn, lies on the western side of Yongle Atoll in the Xisha Qundao, about 89 kilometers from Yongxing Island and 6.5 kilometers from Jinyin Island. The reef stretches six kilometers from north to south, measures about 3.5 kilometers at its widest point and covers roughly 15 square kilometers.
The reef, also traditionally known among Chinese fishermen as Kuangzai or Quanzai, is administered by the city of Sansha in South China's Hainan Province.
"Lingyang Jiao is an inherent part of China's territory. Fishermen from Hainan sailed there to fish as early as the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties," Xu Xiaodong, a vice chairman of the Huayang Center for Maritime Cooperation and Ocean Governance, told the Global Times on March 23.
In 1935, the then-Chinese government included the reef in its bilingual list of South China Sea island names. Its name was reviewed again in a corresponding list issued by the then ministry of the interior in 1947 and has remained in use ever since, Xu said.
During the 1974 Xisha self-defense counterattack, the South Vietnamese warship Nhat Tao was sunk in waters near Lingyang Jiao. Xu said these facts demonstrate the Chinese government's determination and actions to safeguard its sovereignty over the Xisha Qundao, including Lingyang Jiao.
Lei Xiaolu, a professor at Wuhan University China Institute of Boundary and Ocean Studies, said that China was the first country to discover, develop and administer the Xisha Qundao. Successive Chinese governments have continuously exercised jurisdiction over the islands, including Lingyang Jiao, forming a clear historical record.
France recognized China's sovereignty over the Xisha Qundao in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Lei said. When France attempted to occupy the Xisha Qundao in 1931 and nine islands and reefs in the Nansha Qundao in 1933, the Chinese government immediately protested and reaffirmed its sovereignty.
Numerous official documents from that period clearly placed the Dongsha, Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha Qundao within Chinese territory, such as a 1935 map of the South China Sea islands, a brief chorography of the South China Sea islands in 1947, a comparison table of their old and new names, and a location map bearing the South China Sea dash line. After the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, the Chinese government continued to exercise sovereignty over the Xisha Qundao.
"Lingyang Jiao is part of China's Xisha Qundao. The Chinese government has repeatedly made clear that China has indisputable sovereignty over the Xisha Qundao," Lei said.
Construction to improve living
Previously published aerial images have shown Lingyang Jiao's distinctive ring-shaped lagoon, but its natural beauty long contrasted with the rudimentary living conditions faced by local fishermen.
According to the official website of the Sansha city government, the reef was once almost entirely barren, with little vegetation. Fishermen lived two or three to a coral-stone hut measuring only three or four square meters.
For a long period, a single diesel generator was used to supply electricity on the reef, providing power only between 7 pm and 11 pm. Fresh water had to be carried from vessels arriving from Hainan Island, while typhoons posed a constant threat to residents and their homes.
Construction of a fishermen's settlement was put on the agenda in 2012. However, the complex topography and hydrological conditions around the reef prevented large vessels from approaching, forcing workers to carry construction materials ashore by hand.
After years of development, Lingyang Jiao now has basic infrastructure including a desalination facility and a power station. Its navigation channel has been dredged and opened, and a fishermen's settlement has been completed.
Xu said the current construction serves at least two purposes: The first is to provide more and better public services.
Lingyang Jiao lies on the outer edge of the Yongle Islands, surrounded by some of the most difficult navigational waters in the Xisha Qundao. In 2015, the Chinese government built and activated a lighthouse there to provide navigation services for passing vessels.
"Further construction can provide stronger infrastructure support for maritime search and rescue, disaster prevention and mitigation, and help ensure navigational safety in the South China Sea," Xu said.
The construction will also further improve local residents' living conditions. Transport difficulties have long left the reef short of essential supplies, while typhoons have repeatedly caused serious damage to housing. The construction can better meet fishermen's needs for water, electricity, secure housing and employment, Xu noted.
"Fishermen working in the South China Sea have long faced extremely harsh conditions. Far from shore, they spent weeks exposed to intense sunlight, strong winds, heavy rain and sudden typhoons, often without a safe place to rest or repair their boats," Ding Duo, director of the Research Center for International and Regional Issues at the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, told the Global Times on Wednesday.
Ding said the construction is intended to improve the living standards of Chinese fishermen and represents a direct result of China's people-centered development philosophy.
"China now has the capacity and resources to develop infrastructure at Lingyang Jiao. Doing so is both feasible and responsible, and responds to the long-standing needs of fishermen who have depended on these waters for their livelihoods for centuries," Ding said.
Besides, ecological protection has remained a prerequisite for production and construction on the reef. In 2019, a research team led by Professor Xie Qiang from Sun Yat-sen University School of Life Sciences discovered a new marine insect species at Lingyang Jiao and named it after the reef.
It was China's first discovery of a strictly marine insect group at the family level within its territory and territorial waters, filling a gap in the country's scientific records.
"China's land reclamation and construction activities are conducted in strict accordance with laws, regulations and ecological standards," Xu said. "Through technological innovation and systematic governance, China has balanced ecological protection with resource utilization. The results of environmental protection at Lingyang Jiao and in its surrounding waters are clearly visible," Xu said.
No room for external interference
China's construction at Lingyang Jiao has drawn persistent attention from some foreign media. Since January, outlets including Newsweek have used satellite images to hype the project.
The US-based Center for Strategic and International Studies recently claimed that the reclaimed area at Lingyang Jiao had surpassed that of Yongxing Island and was approaching the size of Meiji Jiao, China's largest island reef in the South China Sea.
A Reuters report published on Wednesday went further, claiming that Lingyang Jiao could be one of the Chinese military's most important features in the South China Sea. It speculated that the reef could host surveillance facilities or support nuclear-powered submarines to strengthen "China's military presence around key waterways."
Ding rejected this accusation, saying that as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China conducts construction on islands and reefs in the South China Sea strictly within the framework of international law.
"The construction at Lingyang Jiao is peaceful in nature and serves the public. It is intended to better safeguard national territory while providing practical assistance to people and vessels operating in the South China Sea," Ding said.
Ding said improved infrastructure at Lingyang Jiao would bring broader benefits to the region by strengthening China's capacity to provide public services. These include more accurate weather forecasting, faster and more efficient emergency rescue, broader marine scientific research and stronger safety support for the South China Sea's busy international shipping routes.
"China's construction can provide more international public goods and help reduce risks for merchant ships, fishing vessels and other maritime activities," Ding said. "It is not militarization, but an effort aimed at safeguarding peace and stability. The tendency to view everything China does as military in purpose reflects the dark geopolitical mentality of the West."
Xu said China's land reclamation and construction activities also have a solid basis in international law. China ratified the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea in 1996 and, under the convention, has the right to conduct construction on islands and reefs within its own territorial waters without seeking the consent or approval of any other country.
"The Xisha Qundao have been Chinese territory since ancient times. Lingyang Jiao has long been a place where Chinese fishermen live and work, and it also carries the history of the Maritime Silk Road," Xu said.
Both history and present-day reality demonstrate China's indisputable sovereignty over the South China Sea islands, including the Xisha Qundao, Xu noted. The waters surrounding the Xisha Qundao are under China's effective administration, making land reclamation and construction at Lingyang Jiao normal activities within China's sovereign jurisdiction.
Objections from external parties are inconsistent with China's long-standing administration of the South China Sea islands and have no basis in international law or international rules, Xu said. No country has the right to interfere in China's construction activities at Lingyang Jiao.
。 8月26日讯曼联官方宣布，签下布莱顿中场巴莱巴，根据相关报道，转会费的总价达到约7000万英镑。英媒《每日电讯报》发文分析巴莱巴。电讯报表示，曼联20年来一直希望解决中场问题，最终将目光投向了巴莱巴。曼联迫切希望这位喀麦隆国脚能够最终填补布莱恩·罗布森、保罗·因斯以及罗伊·基恩后的中场空缺。曼联对卡洛斯·巴莱巴漫长的追求，中间也经历了球员身价的下跌，同时也表明了拉特克利夫爵士时代的策略——至少绝不签下那些他们认为高溢价的球员。去年夏天，布莱顿老板布鲁姆对巴莱巴的估价甚至高于凯塞多，后者在2023年以创当时纪录的1.15亿英镑身价加盟切尔西。今年1月，随着巴莱巴的状态被普遍认为较2024-25赛季有所下滑，布鲁姆依然将其定性为一名身价1亿英镑的球员。到了今年夏天，这一数字已降至7000万英镑——更确切地说是6500万英镑加上500万英镑的浮动条款，这种方式压低了名义上的转会费，对两家俱乐部都有利。

B | 无论如何，对于一名2023年仅以约2600万英镑从里尔引进的球员来说，这笔交易都是布鲁姆的又一次胜利。

C | 据了解，这家法甲俱乐部保留了二次转会分成条款。在埃利奥特·安德森的争夺战中，曼联输给了曼城，他们也不打算匹配热刺为托纳利支付的1亿英镑、或是马特乌斯·费尔南德斯的8500万英镑。甚至连7500万英镑的吉马良斯也超出了他们心理预期。相反，曼联将资金分散到了下一个档次的的三名球员身上安德雷·桑托斯、蒂莱曼斯和巴莱巴。曼联从去年夏天前场重组中汲取了信心——当时他们以约2亿英镑的总价引进了姆伯莫、舍什科和库尼亚——并将这种理念应用到了中场。

D | 虽然相比曼城显得相当保守，但这确实是实打实的一步提升。他们的同城对手在这个转会窗结束时，看起来将同时签下安德森、布阿迪甚至恩佐——两名转会费过亿的中场以及一名身价8600万英镑的年轻人（布阿迪）。当然，曼城也通过一些大手笔的出售获得了收入，而且未来还会有更多——这正是曼联至今仍感到棘手的问题。即便如此，英超联赛对曼城的诉讼案已持续近四年仍未结案，这让人不禁觉得有些匪夷所思。巴莱巴是一名6号位球员，在其处于最佳状态时，有能力覆盖曼联防线中暴露出的关键区域——尤其是在鲁本·阿莫林时期的战术体系之下。他习惯使用左脚，具备在防守和进攻区域赢得球权的能力。他是一名优秀的传球手，尽管算不上得分手。他能够在面对压迫时接球并妥善理球。作为一家曾经围绕布莱恩·罗布森、保罗·因斯、罗伊·基恩等一众中场巨星建立起来的俱乐部，曼联在 21 世纪签下同等质量球员的纪录与其辉煌的历史相去甚远。迈克尔·卡里克，算是其中表现较好的一位——但即便连他，也称不上是无可挑剔的成功。在卡里克加盟后的七年里，弗格森爵士只进行了三笔重磅中场引援：欧文·哈格里夫斯、巴西人安德森以及五年后的香川真司。后者从来都不是传统意义上的中路中场。哈格里夫斯加盟时，正值弗格森基本垄断顶级英格兰本土球员转会市场的时期；在伤病终结其顶级职业生涯之前，哈格里夫斯是球队夺得2007-08赛季辉煌的重要功臣。自那以后，曼联相对于转会投入的中场引援纪录一直令人堪忧。甚至有观点认为，在所有弗格森时代之后的引援中，费莱尼是最奏效的一个。他在队内效力了长达六年。埃雷拉未能带来颠覆性的改变，施魏因施泰格与施奈德林没能打出来，随后是8900万英镑签下的保罗·博格巴——这笔交易完全没能像预期那样改变曼联。马蒂奇贡献了五年稳健的发挥，但无论从什么标准来看，那都算不上是一个黄金时代。范德贝克则成为了曼联挥霍无度的典型缩影。俱乐部在卡塞米罗身上花费了巨额的转会费和工资，他直到上赛季结束离队前始终保持着主力首发的位置。然而，曼联并没有得到他的巅峰期，埃里克森也是同理。引进巴莱巴和桑托斯这类球员的目标，在于曼联至少能够从今夏的这些签约中收获球员的巅峰期。芒特和乌加特目前为止尚未取得成功。在过去20年里，曼联的领袖角色往往由进攻球员担任，如鲁尼和B费，上一位担任曼联队长的传统意义上的纯中场是卡里克，他在2017-18最后一个赛季接替离队的鲁尼戴上了队长袖标。而上一位长期担任队长的纯中场则是罗伊·基恩，他在20多年前离开了曼联。巴莱巴或许无法达到那种历史高度，但当他审视许多后来者时，会发现这块门槛其实并没有那么高。