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One of the major regional conflicts is between China and many other nations that surround the South China Sea. Even as the United States is keen to intercept China’s attempts to seize control, analysts have already warned of the risk of all-out conflict ensuing in the waters happening before the US inaugurates a new president.
Speaking to Newsweek, the South China Sea Probing Initiative warned of the risk of a possible clash happening in the highly-contested waters. The organization stressed that the clash between the US and China may be likely due to tensions between the two major countries. This may take place even before incoming US president Joe Biden is to be inaugurated into office.
“We still believe that the risk of conflict is rising,” said the organization. “Though less mentioned in media reports recently, there have always been several encounters of various kinds from the two sides every single day. If the US and China couldn’t find substantive crisis management measures, the risk of an accident or unexpected conflict would still be high.”
The comments echo that of Maritime Strategy Research director Hu Bo, who also raised concerns about the possible conflict that may break out between Beijing and Washington. Hu Bo explained that while chances of a major conflict that could happen between the two countries are small, it is the opposite for small or medium-scale conflicts, which are more likely to happen. At the same time, Taiwanese foreign minister Joseph Wu called other nations to help stop China from trying to establish dominance, especially over Taiwan and other regions it claims to have sovereignty over.
Previously, Sweden announced its rearmament program that would see them increase military spending in the next few years. Speaking to the local news outlet Dagens Nyheter, the country’s defense minister Peter Hultqvist explained that the country could no longer dismiss any potential threats to national security. Mr. Hultqvist noted that the decision was made on the presumption that Sweden’s state of affairs has worsened as of late. He added that the government and parliament’s warnings of a possible clash in the future have now dismissed the beliefs that chances of hostility occurring in the country are very unlikely.
