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Significance
However, China's navy already has an operational sea-based nuclear deterrent based on Hainan Island. The deployment of nuclear-armed submarines, and their need to reach the mid-Pacific to threaten the continental United States, makes the South China Sea an arena not just of maritime disputes but of US-China military rivalry.
Impacts
The strategic importance of the Philippines, Taiwan and Singapore to the United States will increase.
A new defence agreement with the Philippines will, as of last month, support US military activities in the area.
Washington will encourage greater Japanese involvement in the South China Sea; as long as Shinzo Abe is prime minister, Japan will oblige.
Keywords:
China,
AP,
East Asia,
South-east Asia,
United States,
international relations,
defence,
military,
nuclear weapons,
security
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2016
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