U.S. Secretary of State nominee Rex Tillerson's hawkish remark on China has drawn a warning for Washington by the Chinese state media that the US would have to wage a war to block Beijing’s access to South China Sea.
During his confirmation hearing in the Senate on Wednesday, former Exxon Mobil Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson said China's island-building in the South China Sea needed to end and the mainland's access to the area "is not going to be allowed."
State-owned Global Times responded with an editorial on Friday warning that any such attempt would force a “devastating confrontation” and both sides should “prepare for a military clash.”
The United States would have to "wage a large-scale war" in the South China sea to prevent Chinese access to the islands, the editorial said.
"Tillerson had better bone up on nuclear power strategies if he wants to force a big nuclear power to withdraw from its own territories," the paper added.
The editorial also said that Tillerson, an Exxon Mobil Corp chairman and former chief executive, was the most likely of US President-elect Donald Trump's cabinet picks to be vetoed by congress.
"It is suspected that he merely wanted to curry favour from senators and increase his chances of being confirmed by intentionally showing a tough stance toward China," it said.
The paper did not elaborate on either point.
