“I’m pretty frank with people: I don’t think that we’d allow the U.S. to get dragged into a conflict over fish or over a rock,” said a senior U.S. military official, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss deliberations within the Obama administration. “Having allies that we have defense treaties with, not allowing them to drag us into a situation over a rock dispute, is something I think we’re pretty all well-aligned on.”

While the maritime feuds have concerned Washington, the U.S. military official noted that China has shown some restraint by sending maritime patrol boats to assert its territorial claims instead of heavily armed warships. “They’ve tended to deal with these things at the Coast Guard level,” the official said.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qYnfs4Q4vbE&feature=player_embedded

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkNQnqnvPoY&feature=player_embedded