PALUBA

Ko je prodao ostrva Japanu, Tajvan?

Prodao je privatnik. U stvari, prodao je zemlju koju posjeduje na ostrvima japanskoj vladi.

Zašto ovaj razbija boce lošeg viskija? Može poslužiti za pranje prozora i špakera.

Zašto ovaj razbija boce lošeg viskija? Može poslužiti za pranje prozora i špakera.

zato što je holandija američka podguzna muva a kina nije.

Ozbilno?
A to da je Nizozemska gradila u svome teritorijalnom moru, koje se drži na obalu, to nikom ništa. Glavno da su Amerikanci i njihove "podguzne" muhe za sve krivi, a Rusi i Kinezi sama dobrota..
Ne vidim nikakve razlike između Amerike, Rusije i Kine i širenja teritorija.

ја видим.

ajde da to rešimo pitanjem, zašto je dozvoljeno izraelu da ima atomsku bombu a nije dozvoljeno iranu? zašto je dozvoljeno saudi arabiji da bude takvakakva jeste (šerijat) a mnogo blaže države kao libija ili sirija su razlupane? u krajnjem slučaju, zašto je nekima dozvoljeno da slave neke događaje iz t.11 a drugima se na nos nabija slavljenje nekih događaja od pre 200 godina? čista i jasna situacija. kineze ne smeju da bombarduju jer ovi imaju čime da uzvrate, pa galame da ne bi ispali pi**e.

како оно рекоше да се зове море у ком су ова вештачка острва?

Kako bilo more je Kinesko ;D ;D ;D

брзо га проучили кинези ;D

Administracija američkog predsednika predstavila je u ponedeljak nacionalnu strategiju, u kojoj je navedeno da Kina i Rusija ne samo što žele da izazivaju SAD, već i da naruše njenu bezbednost i napredak.

https://youtu.be/ahL-kFB0BvM

Da li onda Indija ima pravo na ceo Indijski okean ? Ovo je neviđeni presedan što kina radi, sreća pa mi nismo zemlja na moru pa ne moramo da brinemo da li će nama neko ispred nosa da gradi ostrva.

"Prokleti da ste, nikada necete dobiti orden "Purpurno Srce" krijuci se u zemunici ! Za mnom !"
Kapetan Henry P. Jim Crowe - 13.01.1943. - (Gvadalkanal)

Samo diskutujem o ovom novom načinu ponižavanja malih zemalja koje Kina primenjuje i obogaćuje asortiman koji su Ameri i Rusi već poodavno osmislili.

Svaka zemlja ima onoliko baza koliko je sposobna da dogovori. Varšavski pakt je propao tako da Rusi trenutno imaju baze u nekim bivšim SSSR i par diktatorskih zemalja. Za više od toga nemaju diplomatskih kapaciteta a mislim ni para. Ameri imaju više iz prostog razloga što njihov NATO još postoji i što imaju dobre odnose širom sveta pa mogu da biraju gde će baze da prave.

Kina je nova u tom "poslu" ali to joj ne daje pravo da otima tuđu teritoriju zato što ima manje baza od drugih. Neka lepo dogovore sa drugim vladama pa otvore baze u drugim zemljama. Zamisli da i Ameri postupe neodgovorno kao Kina i da recimo napujdaju Tajvan da sagradi ostrvo između njega i Kine. Tajvan je takođe Kina pa po toj izmišljenoj logici kinesko mora pripada i njima.

Varšavski pakt je propao tako da Rusi trenutno imaju baze u nekim bivšim SSSR i par diktatorskih zemalja.

Ako sam nešto prevideo ili spisak nije kompletan

... а питање је да ли уопште знамо суштину проблема у Јужном и Источном кинеском мору и шта се тамо, заправо, дешава...

Znamo. Prirodna bogastva i profit, a pitanje kako se to prikazuje, ili svi kinezi u jednoj zemlji ili zaštita tajvana itd.

Наравно да су новац и ресурси у основи свега. Због тога се и сви гурају око архипелага Спратли у Јужном кинеском мору. Да не би били забуне, нису Кинези неки узурпатори који отимају туђе, већ све земље које излазе на Јужно кинеско море имају свој дио колача у том архипелагу. Осим тога, све те земље имају и своје војне инсталације тамо. Проблем је настао што Кинези нису били лијени и од своја три атола и пјешчана наноса су направили упоришта са аеродромима, што је утицало на режим пловидбе у тим водама. Дакле, нема ту лоших момака који малтретирају слабе, већ се сви лактају како знају.

Што се Тајвана тиче, он је кључ кинеског приступа океанима, а тај кључ је тренутно у америчким рукама (Тајванци су ту само статисти и будућа колатерална штета). И тренутно стање ствари је веома фрустрирајуће за Кинезе. Ту ће притисак само да расте...

svih 5 država se vode kao okupatori tih ostrva.

Jedini koji imaju neku pravnu osnovu su Vijetnamci jer je to bio deo Francuske Indokine pre nego što se Francuska povukla odatle.

Sad sam naleteo da su se čak i Bruneji upetljali i da sad i oni pretenduju na neka ostrva. Gori su od nas balkanaca :)

može samo da kuka preko novina o tome

Khm, khm, taj incident se desio u Džibutiju khm, khm.

Laserski označivači tipično imaju domet manji od 10.000m. Ti daljinomeri su uvek u sastavu nekog nišanskog sistema. Moglo bi se smatrati za provokaciju!

Laser može da povredi oko ako se gleda direktno u emitovani zrak, tj, ako zrak padne na oko, tj. mrežnjaču.

Jel beše gospođa prvi Admiral komanduje sa tog nosača ?

Mogu li na ovaj NH sletati japanski F-35?

China’s military capabilities are booming, but does its defense industry mirror that trend?
By: Mike Yeo     2 days ago

MELBOURNE, Australia — China’s massive military modernization program over the past two decades has been matched to a large degree by a parallel development in its state-owned military-industrial base, and that trend is set to continue as China continues it efforts to build up its forces to challenge U.S. military primacy in the western Pacific.

Despite accusations that a lot of the technology has been acquired through espionage or outright intellectual property theft, there is no question that China’s military might has taken a big leap in capabilities since the turn of the century as it has transformed itself into an economic powerhouse.

This buildup is most evident at sea, where the ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy, or PLAN, are frequently encountered by the navies of China’s neighbors at sea in greater numbers at longer and longer distances from China’s coastline. They have also been appearing frequently at or near the disputed reefs and features in the South China Sea, which China has reclaimed and turned into military outposts. The country has regularly challenged U.S. military ships in the area and harassed those from the rival claimants of the region.

Most of the PLAN’s ships are built by two state-owned shipbuilding behemoths, the China State Shipbuilding Corporation and the China Shipbuilding Industry Company. Together both companies have primarily been responsible for the Chinese naval buildup, with the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies noting earlier this year that China “has launched more submarines, warships, principal amphibious vessels and auxiliaries than the total number of ships currently serving in the navies of Germany, India, Spain, Taiwan and the United Kingdom” since 2014.

The think tank further noted that following a period in the 1990s and early 2000s when China experimented with small classes of incrementally improved designs, it has in recent years settled on designs and shifted its priorities toward putting ships in the water at a rapid clip, in what has been likened to “dropping dumplings into soup.” The results have been impressive to see, with almost 50 Type 056 corvettes and more than 20 Type 054 frigates commissioned within the last decade.

The shipbuilding program is more impressive when larger ships are factored in, with eight Type 052D destroyers in service and another 11 in various stages of construction or sea trials, with a further six of the new Type 055 cruisers fitting out or being built. Both classes are modern ships fitted with advanced phased-array radars and vertical launch systems capable of launching a variety of anti-ship, anti-aircraft or land-attack missiles.

An aircraft carrier program is also ongoing, with a locally built ship based on the former Soviet Admiral Kuznetsov-class vessel being fitted out, while the first a new class of more capable aircraft carrier is believed to be undergoing module construction in Shanghai.

Aviation

China’s aviation industry is also making strides in building up its capabilities. It has moved away from its beginnings manufacturing licensed and unlicensed copies of Soviet aircraft during the Cold War. The backbone of the People’s Liberation Army Air Force is the Chengdu J-10 and the Shenyang J-11/15/16 derivatives of the Russian Sukhoi Flanker family, although the latter are extensively fitted with local avionics, weapon systems and engines.

The industry has also ramped up production of support aircraft, with the Y-9 turboprop and Y-20 jet airlifters in serial production. The former is also built for special missions such as airborne early warning, anti-submarine and intelligence gathering fitted with locally developed mission systems.

However, the local industry continues to struggle with critical technologies despite a sustained effort at bridging this gap. This is most notable in the field of aircraft engines, as China is still seemingly unable to produce jet engines to a standard it deems satisfactory; the country still relies, to some extent, on imported Russian engines. This is exemplified by the single-engine J-10 interceptor, J-15 carrier-borne fighter and Y-20 — all still operating with imported power plants despite Chinese equivalents already in service or in development.

This is also true of the Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter, which is slowly entering service, although recent evidence suggests some J-20 prototypes are undergoing flight tests powered by indigenous engines with low-observable features.

That Chinese defense companies — like universities and research institutes that conduct defense-related research and development — are entirely state-owned entities has not stopped them from pursuing private ventures for the export market. In recent years, Chinese companies have pushed hard for arms exports, with the country’s share of the global arms market increasing in recent years.

However, the export successes have mostly been connected to developing nations, who were attracted by the lower price point and the few political strings attached to sales of Chinese weapon systems, compared to Western counterparts. Attempts to move into more prestigious markets has so far proved unsuccessful, except in cases where buyers are unable to access Western systems such as Saudi Arabia turning to Chinese armed drones due to since-relaxed American restrictions on the export of such systems.

One of the main stumbling blocks has been a negative perception on the quality of Chinese-made arms, a reputation partly fueled by China refusing to release its top-of-the line systems for export, with a notable example being the Shenyang J-31 stealth fighter, which has been marketed overseas despite the Chinese military showing little interest.

Кинези играју "коцкарски": ко рискира тај добија. Наравно, може и да изгуби али се они уздају и близину своје обале и јачину растуће флоте и војске уопште.

Zato, nije mi jasno, zašto USA tu troši svoje snage, i gubi svoj međunarodni ugled.

Incident se dogodio nakon što je protekle nedelje Indonezija potopila 51 vijetnamski, malezijski i kineski brod da bi sprečila nastavak ilegalnog ribolova u sopstvenim vodama, koje se graniče sa Južnokineskim morem.

The U.S. Navy sent a pair of ships to patrol in the vicinity of a mineral rights dispute between Malaysia and China in the South China Sea for the second time in a month, U.S. officials told US Military Defense.

Littoral Combat Ship USS Montgomery (LCS-8) and replenishment ship USNS Cesar Chavez (T-AKE-14) conducted a presence operation in the South China Sea on Thursday near Panamanian-flagged drill ship West Capella. The drill ship is under contract to conduct surveying operations in Malaysia’s exclusive economic zone for Malaysian state oil company Petronas. Chinese People Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) warships and China Coast Guard vessels have also operated near the Malaysian-contracted drilling ship.

High Tension: US Navy Upgrade more Ships for the F-35 to fight China in South China Sea

Former acting Navy Secretary Thomas Modly hadn’t been out of the job more than a month before the Navy canceled an ongoing study he’d launched into the future of aircraft carriers — a review he optimistically termed “Future Carrier 2030.”

Modly and his predecessor, Richard Spencer, had been excited by the prospect of fielding smaller, more risk-worthy carriers that could reduce the chance of China or Russia landing a major punch in a conflict simply by sinking or disabling a single ship, such as a Nimitz- or Ford-class aircraft carrier with thousands of sailors and tens of billions of dollars of hardware aboard.

The operations are designed to support the development of integrated warfighting capabilities, the 7th Fleet said.

U.S. Navy and U.S. Marines Corps units have been conducting operations in early May in the Asia-Pacific, the U.S. 7th Fleet said in a statement. The activities have occurred throughout the 7th Fleet’s area of operations, which extends from the middle of the Pacific Ocean to the western coast of India, encompassing most of the Indian Ocean. The ongoing operations are focused on increasing interoperability between the two services.

US naval buildup in Indo-Pacific seen as warning to China

For the first time in nearly three years, three American aircraft carriers are patrolling the Indo-Pacific waters, a massive show of naval force in a region roiled by spiking tensions between the U.S. and China and a sign that the Navy has bounced back from the worst days of the coronavirus outbreak.

Taiwan jets 'drive away' intruding Chinese fighter plane, third intrusion in days

16 Jun 2020 04:49PM
(Updated: 16 Jun 2020 04:49PM)
 
TAIPEI: Taiwan air force jets "drove away" a Chinese fighter plane that briefly entered Taiwan's air defence identification zone on Tuesday (Jun 16), the defence ministry said, reporting the third intrusion in a week.

The single J-10 fighter was given radio warnings to leave before the Taiwanese air force jets ushered the intruder out of the airspace southwest of the island, the ministry said.

On Tuesday last week, the ministry said several Su-30 fighters, some of China's most advanced jets, crossed into the same airspace and were also warned to leave.

On Friday, the ministry said a Chinese Y-8, a propeller aircraft based on a Soviet-era design some of which have been retrofitted as surveillance aircraft, was warned too by Taiwan's air force to leave the air space, again in the southwest.

The Y-8 flight came a few hours after Taiwan said it had carried out missile tests off its eastern coast.

Taiwan has complained that China, which claims the democratic island as its own, has stepped up military activities in recent months, menacing Taiwan even as the world deals with the coronavirus pandemic.

China has not commented publicly on the last week of Chinese air force activity near Taiwan. Beijing routinely says such exercises are nothing unusual and are designed to show the country's determination to defend its sovereignty.

China has never renounced the use of force to bring Taiwan under its control. One of China's most senior generals last month said China would attack if there was no other way of stopping Taiwan becoming independent.

China is deeply suspicious of Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen, whom it accuses of being a separatist intent on declaring formal independence. Tsai says Taiwan is already an independent country called the Republic of China, its official name.

The United States has stepped up its military activities near the island too, with semi-regular navy voyages through the narrow Taiwan Strait.

izvor (https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asia/taiwan-jets--drive-away--intruding-chinese-fighter-plane--third-intrusion-in-days-12840374)

A US Navy warship again challenged China's vast South China Sea claims Thursday as US-China tensions run high.

US Military Drops 38 Amphibious Ships to Storming South China Sea Island

The Corps has held steadfast for nearly a decade on its requirement for 38 amphibious ships to haul Marines and gear to the fight — now the new top Marine says that’s no longer the case.

South China Sea crisis: Beijing accuses US Air Force of conducting spy missions in South China Sea

BEIJING has accused the US Air Force of undertaking surveillance missions in the highly contested South China Sea.

Tensions between the US and China have escalated over recent weeks with both states increasing military powers in the disputed region. But now a Chinese think tank claims the US are undertaking surveillance missions in the region.

Taiwan's air, sea and land forces launched a military exercise aimed at repelling a simulated invader near Taichung in central Taiwan on Thursday.

Footage shows naval vessels, helicopters and Ching-kuo fighter jets partaking in the drills near a coastal strip.

As many as 8,000 soldiers took part in the live-fire drill.

The drill was modelled on a potential invasion of the island by China and comes at a time where tensions between Beijing and Taiwan have flared up anew.

Beijing sees Taiwan as part of its territory.

US Warship Sails Contested Waters in South China Sea

A day after the White House announced it would reject nearly all of China’s maritime claims in the South China Sea, the U.S. warship Ralph Johnson steamed through the contested waters Tuesday, according to U.S. 7th Fleet officials.

Called Just a Paper Tiger: BUS Air Force fly Its all Power for Surrounds South China Sea Island

A B-52 from Barksdale Air Force Base, La., flew a 28-hour mission to the Pacific on July 2, linking up with two Navy carrier strike groups in the South China Sea in a show of strength in international waters.

US Warship Sails Contested Waters in South China Sea

A day after the White House announced it would reject nearly all of China’s maritime claims in the South China Sea, the U.S. warship Ralph Johnson steamed through the contested waters Tuesday, according to U.S. 7th Fleet officials.

B-1 Bombers Deploy to Guam as Navy Carriers Continue Readiness Training in South China Sea

The Air Force on Friday deployed two B-1B bombers to Guam as the Navy continued its dual-aircraft carrier operations in the contested South China Sea.

US Navy Aircraft Carriers Resume Rare Dual Exercises in The South China Sea

Two US Navy aircraft carriers have resumed rare dual exercises in the South China Sea, the second time this month the massive warships have teamed up in the contested waters.

The USS Ronald and USS Nimitz carrier strikes groups, comprising more than 12,000 US military personnel among the two aircraft carriers and their escorting cruisers and destroyers, were operating in the South China Sea as of Friday, the US Pacific Fleet said in a statement.

China’s Military Stages Island Invasion Drill During Taiwan Holiday
GABRIELLE REYES 12 Oct 2020

China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) staged a large-scale exercise simulating an island invasion on Saturday, the same day as Taiwan’s National Day holiday, Chinese state media reported on Monday.

The military drills featured PLA “drones, special forces, and airborne troops, and saw forces moving from multiple locations in the coastal [Chinese] provinces of Guangdong and Fujian, some of them by night,” China Central Television (CCTV) reported.

The nation of Taiwan is located about 100 miles east of China’s southeastern coast, where the provinces of Guangdong and Fujian are located.

The PLA released a video of the exercises on Sunday in which it described the mock beach assault in detail.

“As the drill began at night, several formations of amphibious armored vehicles headed to designated areas,” the Chinese army wrote.

“Armed reconnaissance approached the ‘enemy’ beach and relayed observation information back to the command post. The commander immediately ordered the artillery to open fire, destroying the enemy artillery and missile launching positions,” according to the report.

“Covered by artillery fire from the air and ground, the amphibious assault group changed formations and immediately marched onto the shoreline,” the PLA relayed.

Taiwan operates as a sovereign state with its own military and democratic government. Despite this, Beijing regards the island as a breakaway territory and has vowed to reunify Taiwan with China by force, if necessary.

Saturday’s PLA exercises coincided with Taiwan’s National Day. Also known as Double Ten Day, the holiday commemorates the start of an uprising that overthrew the Qing dynasty in China, laying the groundwork for the founding of the Republic of China in 1912.

The PLA announced on Saturday that it would hold “another live-fire exercise in the Taiwan Strait, starting on Tuesday [October 12] and lasting for four days,” the South China Morning Post reported.

“The drill will be held off the Gulei Peninsula in Fujian province, according to a notice from the local maritime authorities — a location on the opposite side of the Taiwan Strait [which separates China and Taiwan] to Kaohsiung city,” the report stated.

Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen on Saturday called for “meaningful dialogue” with Beijing while urging China to improve cross-strait relations and reduce its antagonism toward the independent island.

“As long as the Beijing authorities are willing to resolve antagonisms and improve cross-strait relations, while parity and dignity are maintained, we are willing to work together to facilitate meaningful dialogue,” she said in her official National Day address.

“We are committed to upholding cross-strait stability, but this is not something Taiwan can shoulder alone; it is the joint responsibility of both sides,” Tsai added.

“Adequate preparation and reliance on the determination and strength of solid national defense capabilities is the only way to guarantee Taiwan’s security and maintain regional peace,” the president said.

“Harassment by air and sea from [China’s People’s Liberation Army] has raised tensions in the Taiwan Strait,” Tsai noted.

“In order to avoid potential conflicts due to miscalculations or accidents, we will address threats to regional peace and stability by upholding our principle of neither fearing nor seeking war,” the president stated.

Potential arms sale to Taiwan could put China’s east coast in the crosshairs
By: Mike Yeo October 24. 2020

MELBOURNE, Australia — The U.S. State Department’s approval of the potential sales of air- and ground-launched, long-range land-attack missiles is a marked departure from previous American policy of only selling so-called defensive weapons to Taiwan.

This broadens the options for the self-governing island to mount not only a ground-based counterstrike in the event of Chinese ballistic missile attack on Taiwan, but would also enable it to disrupt a potential Chinese invasion by striking ports, air bases and other military targets across the Taiwan Strait.

The U.S. Defense Security Cooperation Agency announced Wednesday that the State Department approved three separate arms packages to Taiwan under the Foreign Military Sales program.

The potential $1.8 billion deal is for 135 Boeing AGM-84H SLAM-ER missiles; 11 Lockheed Martin M142 High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems; and six sets of Collins Aerospace’s MS-110 multispectral long-range oblique photography pods.

The DSCA notification did not identify the aircraft platform on which Taiwan would use the AGM-84H and reconnaissance pods, but it will almost certainly be carried by its fleet of F-16 Fighting Falcon jets. Taiwan currently operates more than 140 of the Lockheed Martin-made aircraft, and it has 66 more new-build ones on order.

The AGM-84H missile will enable Taiwanese F-16s to accurately engage fixed or moving land targets from ranges in excess of 150 miles using a variety of terminal guidance systems, including infrared homing, command guidance and automatic target acquisition. The estimated cost of the missile package, which also includes telemetry and training missiles as well as spares and contractor support, is $1.008 billion.

Taiwan’s potential acquisition of the truck-mounted HIMARS will also include 64 M57 Army Tactical Missile Systems, which come with missiles, radios, resupply and recovery vehicles, tactical data systems, and practice rockets for an estimated cost of $436.1 million.

The M57, which uses inertial and GPS guidance and is used for attacking fix point targets, has a 500-pound unitary warhead and can hit targets up to 190 miles away, putting within range stretches of China’s east coast directly opposite Taiwan.

Introducing the M57 into Taiwan’s inventory will broaden its land-based options for striking China, an important consideration should its air bases be disabled. Taiwan already possesses the locally developed Hsiung Feng IIE subsonic land-attack cruise missile with a range of 375 miles, and it is developing the Yun Feng supersonic cruise missile with a planned range of 745-1,240 miles.

China sees Taiwan as a rogue province and has vowed to take back the island by force if necessary. Taiwan has been self-governing since 1949 when nationalist Chinese forces fled there following the communist victory in China’s civil war.

China’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, has criticized the latest arms sales announcement, warning that such sales “severely damage China-U.S. relations and peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait”.

However, the U.S. is required to “make available to Taiwan such defense articles and defense services in such quantity as may be necessary to enable Taiwan to maintain a sufficient self-defense capabilities,” per the Taiwan Relations Act of 1979. The law was put into place by Congress in 1979 following the normalization of relations between the U.S. and China.

DSCA announcements do not represent final sales. If there is no congressional objection, the customer can begin negotiating over price and quantities, which often change by the time a final sale is completed.

US State Department to allow sale of hundreds of anti-ship missiles to Taiwan amid diplomatic row
By: David B. Larter  October27, 2020

WASHINGTON – The U.S. State department is authorizing the sale of 400 anti-ship cruise missiles, along with associated road-mobile launchers, radars and technical support, to Taiwan in a deal worth up to $2.37 billion.

The missiles, Boeing’s Harpoon Block II, would complement 100 Harpoon Coastal Defense System Launcher Transporter Units, 25 radar trucks, four exercise missiles, parts, spares and support as part of the deal. State Department must approve foreign arms sales before a deal can be concluded. Taiwan intends to use its own funds for the missiles, a State Department official said on background.

The sale of anti-ship cruise missiles comes as tensions between China and the United States are elevated over the COVID-19 outbreak, which President Trump blames on China, and over today’s announcement that China intends to sanction Boeing, Lockheed Martin and to some degree Raytheon over U.S. arms sales to Taiwan. The sanctions announcement drew an acid response from State Department Spokesperson Morgan Ortagus, who said in an emailed statement that it was outrageous to target U.S. firms for contracting with the United States government.

“Beijing’s efforts to retaliate against U.S. and foreign companies for their sales that support Taiwan’s legitimate self-defense requirements are unproductive,” Ortagus said. "Worse still, in this case, the People’s Republic of China is sanctioning a company for doing business with the U.S. Government." Ortagus indicated that the sanctions were in response to the pending sale of two missile systems and an aerial reconnaissance system announced last week

“On October 21 the Administration notified Congress of several possible Foreign Military Sales to Taiwan for SLAM-ER missiles, a HIMARS rocket system, and MS-110 reconnaissance pods,” the statement reads. "These are FMS sales in which the U.S. Defense Industrial Base is contracting with the U.S. Government. “As such, the PRC appears to be applying a sanction against a U.S. company for contracting with the U.S. Government. This is entirely unacceptable and reflects a complete lack of understanding of the nature of much of American security cooperation.”

Today’s announcement of a pending Harpoon sale was welcome news to those who want to see the U.S. increase its commitment to Taiwan.

The Harpoon missile is an older technology and travels at sub-sonic speeds, which means it may be more vulnerable to advanced air defenses. But at such high numbers and combined with other capabilities, it’s a good fit for Taiwan’s concept of defense, said Eric Sayers, a former aide to former Indo-Pacific Command head Adm. Harry Harris and a vice president at Beacon Global Strategies

“It’s exciting news,” Sayers said. "These are the numbers and kinds of systems Taiwan needs more of and it will complement existing systems well."

“I think if there’s anything to be concerned about its how fast we can get these systems to the Taiwans. If this is over the next 5-7 years, it’s still something to be excited about but we shouldn’t be coming out of our seats celebrating. And that’s a political question, how we prioritize the sale of these systems to Taiwan versus other countries that may be in line for them.”

Taiwan already operates a more capable road-mobile missile, the Hsiung Feng III, which is supersonic and has a range of about 250 miles, according to the Center for Strategic and International Studies. The issue is that they have not been able to produce the missile in the numbers needed to be a suitable deterrent, Sayers said, adding that combining HF-III with 400 Harpoon missiles would have an impact. The administration should also back up arms sales to Taiwan with increasing bilateral training, Sayers said.

“We need to do more joint bilateral training,” he said. "We judge our commitment to Taiwan too much by weapons, types of weapons and dollar figures. It doesn’t need to be big, in-your-face stuff. You don’t need to invite them to RIMPAC because then everyone would be under pressure to not come and it could blow up RIMPAC. …

“But if you are committed to Taiwan’s security you have to be able to operate together. If we needed to intervene – you know you can’t just put the Mets and Yankees together on the same team the day before the World Series and expect them to play together.”

How to solve logistical challenges during a South China Sea conflict
By: Scott Trail December 24, 2020

“The line between disorder and order lies in logistics.”

— Sun Tzu

Throughout history, thoughtful and responsive logistics plans have played decisive roles in such dramatic victories as the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Conversely, the lack of logistics planning has led to disastrous defeats such as Napoleon’s invasion of Russia. In 1959, the assistant chief of staff for logistics to NATO, Rear Adm. Henry Eccles, defined logistics: “Logistics is the bridge between the economy of the nation and the tactical operations of its own combat forces.” This bridge must be developed and sustained if the forces are to be fed and equipped for conflict.

With its vast expanses of open ocean and seas as well as thousands of remote islands with little or no infrastructure, the Asia-Pacific theater presents multiple challenges to that bridge between the United States and U.S. armed forces in the region. U.S. troops operating in the region are separated from the “economy of the nation” by the world’s largest ocean. China exerts influence and expands claims in its backyard of the East and South China seas. The lack of infrastructure prevents large cargo planes from landing and large ships from pulling into a port.

The logistical challenges that would be faced in a conflict with China are daunting.

The terrain

China’s expansionist aims center primarily around the Spratly and Paracel islands. They are strategic for their rich fisheries, vast oil and natural gas reserves, and the trillions of dollars of shipping that pass through the area. These island chains, spread over 1.35 million square miles, consist of hundreds of small islands and reefs with little or no infrastructure.

According to the CIA, the Spratly Islands have only eight airports, five helipads and zero port facilities. In the Paracel Islands, the Chinese have built an artificial harbor and airfield on Woody Island that houses over 1,000 People’s Liberation Army forces.

With China’s Navy now outnumbering the U.S. Navy, more force multipliers, such as the next generation of vertical lift and a more robust strategic sealift fleet, are needed to fill the gap.

The threat

The Chinese understand the importance of logistics in the Western Pacific. Extending their reach in the South and East China seas is an attempt at increasing their logistical advantage in the region. The seas will provide food to feed their people, oil and gas to fuel their machines, and control of approximately 20 percent of the world’s trade.

This photo taken Feb. 25, 2014, and received from the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs on April 13, 2015, shows an aerial shot of what appears to be a large-scale reclamation by China on the Chinese-held Johnson South Reef, which is also claimed by the Philippines and Vietnam, in what is part of the disputed Spratly chain. (AFP via Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs)
This photo taken Feb. 25, 2014, and received from the Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs on April 13, 2015, shows an aerial shot of what appears to be a large-scale reclamation by China on the Chinese-held Johnson South Reef, which is also claimed by the Philippines and Vietnam, in what is part of the disputed Spratly chain. (AFP via Philippine Department of Foreign Affairs)
If Chinese expansion in the South China Sea remains unabated, China could exert influence well beyond its borders, undermining the international law of the sea.

A 2020 study by the think tank Rand concluded that “once occupied [by Chinese forces,] China will be able to exert its influence thousands of miles south and project power deep into the ocean.” This will threaten not only our partners and allies in the region, but previously uncontested sea lines of communication. The central tenant to this threat is the anti-access/area denial umbrella China is building to deny maneuver in the contested regions.

The challenge

To negate the A2/AD umbrella of long-range sensors and missiles, a January 2019 Medium article stated the first component of the plan is to “disperse forces and capabilities to many locations for operational maneuver.”

This spreads the risk to U.S. assets and potentially expands the sphere of influence. Supporting a mobile and disaggregated force in the South China Sea will require a large, responsive sealift fleet and robust heavy vertical lift.

Unfortunately, the sealift fleet has been neglected for decades, passed over for investments in aircraft carriers and submarines. Those platforms continue to provide the United States a strategic military advantage. But they can’t operate without food to feed the crews and parts to fix the aircraft, ships and submarines. This lack of investment has led to a predictable reduction in readiness.

According to a January National Defense article during a recent sealift mobilization exercise, “only 64% [of ships] were ready for tasking, and only 40% of the fleet was prepared to conduct operations at the level they were expected to.” The article went on to state: “That’s a major problem because the military’s sealift capabilities would be critical in the event of a great power war.”

Fortunately, an Oct. 16 Forbes article reported that improvements to sealift would come at a modest cost and currently enjoy bipartisan support as well the support of Secretary of Defense Mark Esper. The approach is three-pronged: Extend the service life of the most modern vessels in the Ready Reserve Fleet; buy secondhand foreign commercial ships for modification; and build a new class of auxiliary vessels in domestic shipyards.

The Army’s role

Thought of as primarily a land force, a 2014 Rand study on the Army’s role concluded that supporting the joint force “may prove to be among the Army’s most important roles in a major conflict with China — and one for which currently programmed forces might prove inadequate.”

In a maritime environment with very little infrastructure, that means expanding shipboard heavy vertical lift. The Army’s heavy-lift helicopter is the CH-47. While the CH-47 has proven a reliable workhorse for the land-based Army, it has some disadvantages when it comes to operating aboard ships, and the lack of an aerial refueling probe limit its range.

The Marines are readying their next generation of heavy vertical lift, the CH-53K, for deployment, having just successfully completed sea trials this June. The CH-53K has several advantages over the CH-47 for sustaining disaggregated operations in a maritime environment. It has 50 percent greater external lift capacity, aerial refueling, shipboard compatibility, and a fly-by-wire, digital design.

While the CH-47 will continue to play the lead role in Army heavy vertical lift, having a shipboard-compatible, heavy-lift aircraft would increase the Army’s heavy lift capabilities and help to close the sustainment gap.

The longer the sustainment gap continues in the South China Sea, the higher the risk of Chinese expansion. That expansion could result in a dramatic shift to Chinese hegemony at the expense of the U.S. and our allies in the region.

Developing robust logistics infrastructure does not come easy or quickly. Fortunately, there are solutions to revitalize the strategic sealift fleet and augment the Army’s CH-47s with CH-53Ks. Manufacturing helicopters and training their crews for an Army maritime mission will take time. Building and refurbishing ships, and training and recruiting the crews that will sail them, will take an even longer time.

The question is: Will military planners realize time is running out and act before China takes the advice of its ancient general, Sun Tzu? “The quality of decision is like the well-timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.”

Time will tell.

China's military has grown to such an extent that it now represents a credible threat to the US in the Western Pacific. The FT's global China editor James Kynge and Taiwan-based greater China correspondent Kathrin Hille discuss the growing tensions and whether China could actually win a war over Taiwan.

Chinese warplanes simulated attacking US carrier near Taiwan
Kathrin Hille in Taipei and Demetri Sevastopulo in Washington January 28, 2021

Chinese military aircraft simulated missile attacks on a nearby US aircraft carrier during an incursion into Taiwan’s air defence zone three days after Joe Biden’s inauguration, according to intelligence from the US and its allies.

The People’s Liberation Army sent 11 aircraft into the south-western corner of Taiwan’s air defence zone on January 23, and 15 aircraft into the same area the next day, according to Taiwan’s defence ministry. People familiar with intelligence collected by the US and its allies said the bombers and some of the fighter aircraft involved were conducting an exercise that used a group of US Navy vessels led by the carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in the same area as a simulated target.

Pilots of H-6 bombers could be heard in cockpit conversations confirming orders for the simulated targeting and release of anti-ship missiles against the carrier, the people said. The revelations highlight that the intense military competition between the two superpowers around Taiwan and the South China Sea has not eased, posing a challenge to any attempts the Biden administration might make to improve US relations with Beijing.

China’s development of missiles capable of targeting US ships and aircraft in the region has helped counter America’s military dominance in Asia and the western Pacific. Although Chinese experts have said that Beijing remains unwilling to risk open conflict with the US, the PLA’s new muscle is forcing the US to adjust its posture and strategy in Asia.

The area where Taipei reported the incursions last weekend is located between Pratas, a Taiwan-held atoll in the northern part of the South China Sea, and Taiwan proper, where the Taiwan Strait meets the Bashi Channel, a main passageway between the western Pacific and the South China Sea.

“The Su-30 [fighters] can carry Kh-31 anti-ship missiles, and the H-6 bombers and J-16 fighters can both carry YJ anti-ship missiles,” said Su Tzu-yun, an analyst at the Institute for National Defense and Security Research, a think-tank backed by Taiwan’s defence ministry. “All three aircraft are clearly a display of threat against surface ships.”

The US Indo-Pacific Command said on January 23 that the US carrier strike group had sailed into the South China Sea that day. According to ship-tracking data, it passed through the Bashi Channel. The Chinese aerial manoeuvres sparked a strong response from the new US administration, which warned Beijing to stop intimidating Taiwan.

“We urge Beijing to cease its military, diplomatic and economic pressure against Taiwan,” the US state department said, before adding that China should remember that Washington’s relationship with Taipei was “rock solid”.

Mr Biden sent another message to China reaffirming the US commitment to help Japan defend the Senkaku Islands, which are administered by Tokyo but claimed by Beijing, which calls them the Diaoyu.

China experts in Washington expect that Mr Biden will adopt a less chaotic approach than former president Donald Trump in setting policy. 

In an early sign that relations between Washington and Beijing would remain tense over Taiwan and a range of other issues, Antony Blinken, the new US secretary of state, this week said he agreed with the Trump administration, which had said the Chinese government’s repression of Uighur Muslims in detention camps in Xinjiang province was “genocide”. 

In his confirmation hearing last week, Mr Blinken said that while he disagreed with how Mr Trump had implemented his policies towards China, he was “right in taking a tougher approach”.

According to an announcement by China’s Maritime Safety Administration, the PLA is conducting another exercise in the South China Sea, which is due to wrap up on Saturday. Taiwan’s defence ministry has reported larger than average Chinese air incursions into its air defence zone since that latest exercise started on Wednesday.

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Tensions between the U.S. and China have been steadily escalating on a range of issues, but there’s one place where a clash of superpowers would be most likely to happen: the South China Sea. Even with a new U.S. president, the disagreements that led to this moment won’t be easy to resolve. So how did this body of water become a major flashpoint in U.S.-China relations?

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'Doubtful' the US can 'rescue Taiwan' from China

Cognoscenti Group Founder and CEO Dr Alan Dupont says the risk of war has considerably risen from 0.5 per cent to about 25 per cent on his own estimates, especially if Taiwan was annexed by China.

"Politically, President Xi has determined this is his highest priority. He's 68 years old, so he probably has the best part of 10 years to bring about the reunification of Taiwan, by force if necessary," he said.

"The balance of military power has shifted towards China in that part of the world and it's doubtful now if the United States could rescue Taiwan as it has done in the past."

THE Group of Seven, or the G7, has decided to sail full steam into the troubled waters of the South China Sea.
 
In a communiqué after meeting in Toronto last Sunday, the foreign ministers of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States and Britain declared their “strong opposition to any unilateral actions that escalate tensions and undermine regional stability and the international rules-based order, such as the threat or use of force, large-scale land reclamation and building of outposts, as well as their use for military purposes.”

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