Pentagon plans new tactics to limit Beijings's military activities in the South China Sea in spite of U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's statement that they do not want to "contain" China.

On Wednesday, Kerry said during the two-day Strategic and Economic Dialogue (S&ED) in Beijing that the U.S. does not aim to hinder China's rise.

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However, Kerry's statement contradicts a Financial Times' story about Pentagon implementing new techniques to "deter" China in disputed Asian waters.

According to U.S. officials cited by Time Magazine, President Obama is expected to beef up air and sea surveillance in the region as part of the U.S.' Asian "pivot."

Bonnie Glaser, a Chinese military expert, said the U.S. already drafted few measures to send a message to China that it wants to prevent "coercion" and promote a peaceful settlement of the disputed territories. The U.S. wants to maintain the status quo in the region and its role as an ally of western Pacific nations.

China, however, expressed its clear intention to expand its territory and economy. The country is at the forefront of various bitter maritime disputes with neighbors such as Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines. These territorial claims could result in an encounter that could erupt into war.

Beijing will continue the aggressive behavior that it showed in the past towards its neighbors, but the U.S. will soon need to "educate" it about the cost of these moves in the 21st century, says former Pentagon official Thomas Barnett.

In May, U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel described China's actions in the South China Sea as "destabilizing." He detailed how Beijing implemented military actions to put pressure on its neighbors involved in the disputes and said the U.S. opposes "threat of force" in asserting territorial rights.

Despite Kerry's statement, the U.S. made it clear that it is willing and capable of engaging war to keep China from ruling the Senkaku islands (Diaoyus) that are also claimed by Japan. The uninhabited land formations in the East China Sea are surrounded by waters abundant in natural resources.

Although U.S. officials declared several times that they did not have any opinion about the islands' real sovereignty, but China is aware that these statements are vague. Last fall, Hagel said the U.S. is willing to wage war to maintain Tokyo's control over the islands because it has an obligation to Japan under a treaty the two countries signed.

TagsUS versus China, US-China relations, Military action, territorial disputes