China on the South China Seas

[Randy W]

from Time Magazine. This article discusses several situations with the Philippines, Thailand, and Japan

 

Beijing’s Adroit Diplomacy Is Isolating the U.S. in Asia

At a business forum in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People on Thursday, Duterte, who took office in June, announced his nation’s “separation” from the U.S. “Both in military, not maybe social, but economics also,” he said, “America has lost.”

It was a stunning statement from the leader of one of the world’s most pro-American nations, which is bound to the U.S. by a seven-decade-old defense alliance. The setting was also momentous: in recent years, few bilateral relations have been as acrimonious as those between China and the Philippines, which were poisoned by competing territorial claims in the South China Sea.

 

. . .

 

Now, Duterte has agreed to talks on the South China Sea with China, which showered the visiting Philippine President with promises of $13.5 billion in trade deals. “I’ve realigned myself,” Duterte told his hosts on Thursday, “in your ideological flow.” Even though Beijing has built artificial islands that double as floating military bases in contested South China Sea waters, Duterte noted on Wednesday that China “has never invaded a piece of my country all these generations.” He went on: “During the Cold War, China was portrayed as the bad guy [but] … what we have read in our books in school were all propaganda produced by the West.”

 

And that wasn’t all. “Americans are loud, sometimes rowdy. Their larynx is not adjusted to civility,” he added. “They are a very discourteous people.”

 

. . .

 

Even though Thailand is still bound by a U.S. defense alliance, the Thai government has also agreed to buy Chinese submarines. Thailand’s enhanced military relations with China occurred just as Washington suspended military aid to Bangkok because of American concerns over the junta’s power grab.

. . .

 

Nevertheless, Chinese foreign policy analysts see the weight of history in Beijing’s favor. For centuries, Asian nations paid tribute to Chinese emperors, who controlled the world’s richest civilization. The U.S., by contrast, is a recent interloper.

 

[Greg.D.]

Xi really appeals to authoritarian regimes.

 

Though Duterte was elected, they are stuck with him as any dissension will probably be rewarded with a visit from the goon squad. He sold out his country for a Chinese built train to his hometown.

[Randy W]

in the SCMP

‘Let them keep it!’ Trump tweets new twist in China drone drama

Quote

US president-elect Donald Trump says the US should let China keep the US Navy’s unmanned underwater glider that it seized in the South China Sea.

Trump tweeted Sunday morning Hong Kong time: “We should tell China that we don’t want the drone they stole back.- let them keep it!”

His tweet came after the US military announced it had reached an understanding with China for the return of the underwater glider.

It was not immediately known what effect, if any, the president-elect’s tweet would have on the agreement with Beijing.

The tweet was the second time the president-elect injected himself into the controversy through Twitter.

. . .

China says its navy seized a US Navy unmanned underwater glider to ensure the “safe navigation of passing ships”.

Edited June 3, 2021 by Randy W (see edit history)

[Randy W]

the Global Times is a little more belligerent

 

‘Unpresidented’ Trump adds fuel to fire

Trump is not behaving as a president who will become master of the White House in a month. He bears no sense of how to lead a superpower. Even the US military did not use the term "steal" to describe the move by the Chinese navy. Trump's second tweet makes people worry that he will treat China-US relations as child's play.

Now people don't know if Trump is engaged in a psychological war with China or he is just unprofessional, even though he will be sworn in soon. Regarding the Sino-US relationship, he challenged the one-China policy and despised the principles which both countries have adopted to manage crises.

One thing for sure is that Trump has no leverages to maneuver the world, nor can he reshape China-US relations and the way the two major powers interact. Since he has not taken office, China has kept a calm attitude toward his provocative remarks. But if he treats China after assuming office in the same way as in his tweets, China will not exercise restraint.

 

 

[Greg.D.]

I'm just holding my breath. Awkward when your family is mixed nationalities.

 

Will be embarrassing when it turns out that the drone, as planned, transferred a Stuxnet-like virus to the Chinese ship's systems.

 

All for the cause of "safe navigation of ships", of course!

[Allon]

Meanwhile, three aircraft carriers task forces are stationed in and around the South China Sea. The US has already obtained agreements with other countries in the region. Duterte's actions reek of another military takeover and not orchestrated by the US.

 

Again, it becomes "the devil you have...."

[Randy W]

in the SCMP. How to win friends internationally and influence your renegade provinces.

 

Reunification is inevitable, Beijing warns Taiwan

Message comes as PLA aircraft carrier completes ‘routine’ exercise off the coast of self-ruled island

 

Beijing is facing a host of threats to its status quo as the ­independence-leaning leadership of Taiwan grows more vocal, protesters in Hong Kong call for complete separation from the mainland, and an incoming ­Donald Trump presidency in the US threatens to take a more hardline stance in its ties with the world’s second-largest economy.

“A small group of pro-independence forces in Taiwan are colluding with Hong Kong independence advocates to divide the nation,” An Fengshan, spokesman of the Taiwan Affairs Office at the State Council, said.

 

“Their attempts will not succeed,” An told a press briefing. “They will end up with their heads broken and bleeding.”

 

[Allon]

Meanwhile, all over the internet, B-52's are being deployed to the Middle East, stationed at Qatar.. They have a new rotary launched conventional weapons delivery with GPS capability now. Pretty accurate. In Vietnam, the surveys of North Vietnamese soldiers found the most frightening weapon we had was a B-52 strike. The bombs came from nowhere. Two square miles of earth was uprooted. If you were even near one, you risked death from your lungs imploding.

 

And we are bringing more of them out of moth balls at Davis-Monthan. They are being redesigned to last until 2044.

 

Again, I would love to have aerial photo of Kadena AFB in Okinawa. All 3 long range bombers, the 52, the B-1 and the B-2 are there.

 

 

 

http://www.airforce-technology.com/news/newsusaf-receives-six-upgraded-b-52-bombers-boeing-4785180

http://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/giant-of-the-skies-joins-air-campaign-against-isis-q88jps3f2

[amberjack1234]

Glad to see the old gal is still useful. Just because it is old does not mean that it is not useful. :D

[Allon]

Keep'em flyin' buddy.

[Randy W]

Looks like tensions are flaring up a little bit - from Forbes

 

South China Sea: Japan And Taiwan Send Their Own Strong Messages To Beijing

Taiwan defense minister Feng Shih-kuan told Taiwan Central News Agency last Tuesday that the "enemy's threats are increasingly expanding" as he issued out orders for the military to step up training exercises.

"We must always maintain combat preparedness," Feng stated. And urged all senior military commanders to be ready to defeat the enemy, Beijing, that is.

In the meantime, Japan sent its own blunt diplomatic message to Beijing by changing the name of its Taiwanese embassy from 'The Interchange Association' to 'Japan-Taiwan Exchange Association'. That means Tokyo comes a step closer of recognizing Taiwan as a separate country, drawing the angry protests of Beijing.

 

 

[Allon]

I really am not liking the way the world is heating up. It is strikingly similar to the mid-30's when the US was just recovering from a depression, and dictators across the globe were building up their alliances.

[amberjack1234]

I really am not liking the way the world is heating up. It is strikingly similar to the mid-30's when the US was just recovering from a depression, and dictators across the globe were building up their alliances.

I have been telling the wife the exact same thing.

[Randy W]

On the incoming Secretary of State, from the SCMP

 

Trump’s secretary of state nominee Tillerson wants to deny Beijing access to South China Sea islands

Tillerson also said the US was committed to the defence of Japan, in the event that China attempted to seize the disputed Senkaku Islands by force

The former Exxon Mobil Corp chairman and chief executive did not elaborate on what might be done to deny China access to the islands it has built up from South China Sea reefs, equipped with military-length airstrips and fortified with weapons.

 

. . .

 

Democratic President Barack Obama’s administration conducted periodic air and naval patrols to assert the right of free navigation in the South China Sea. These have angered Beijing, but seeking to blockade China’s man-made islands would be a major step further and a step that Washington has never raised as an option.

 

. . .

 

Tillerson also said the United States could not continue to accept “empty promises” China had made about putting pressure on North Korea over that country’s nuclear and missile programs.

 

[Randy W]

Meanwhile (from CNN)

 

Chinese and US aircraft in 'unsafe' encounter

 

The two planes flew within 1,000 feet of each other in the general vicinity of the contested Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea.

A spokesperson for US Pacific Command, which oversees US troops in the region confirmed, the incident, calling it "unsafe" in a statement provided to CNN.

"The U.S. Navy P-3C was on a routine mission operating in accordance with international law," Maj. Rob Shuford said.

"The Department of Defense and US Pacific Command are always concerned about unsafe interactions with Chinese military forces," he added. "We will address the issue in appropriate diplomatic and military channels."

A second official said that the American P-3 had to alter course to ensure that there wasn't an aerial collision.