Beijing could employ controversial measures to control the disputed airspace over the South China Sea, according to a leading expert with close ties to the Chinese government, as it seeks new ways to assert its authority in the contested region.
Wu Shicun, head of the National Institute for South China Sea Studies, said Beijing “reserves the right” to impose a so-called air defence identification zone (ADIZ) once it has finished building its second aircraft carrier.
Although about 20 countries, including the US and Japan, use ADIZs to control access to their airspace, employing such a measure over the South China Sea, where nine countries have competing territorial claims, would be regarded by Beijing’s neighbours and Washington as extremely provocative.
