Category: China

Considering the deadly attacks these Chinese fishing boats have launched against the ROK Coast Guard I think the Chinese government has no legitimate argument to complain about warning shots especially when the Coast Guard thought they were North Korean ships.  If the Chinese government wants to ensure the safety of these fishing boats the best way to do that is to stay out of South Korean waters and not illegally fish:

Picture of illegal Chinese fishing boats teaming up to do battle with the ROK Coast Guard back in 2011.

China said on Wednesday it had asked South Korea to ensure the safety of Chinese ships after South Korea’s navy fired warning shots at a Chinese vessel which crossed into waters disputed by North and South Korea.

The South Korean navy told Yonhap news agency it had fired 10 warning shots at a Chinese boat which it said crossed the Northern Limit Line – a disputed inter-Korean maritime border on the west coast.

The ship was initially thought to be North Korean, but was later identified as Chinese, according to Yonhap.

“We are concerned about the relevant situation,” Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told a daily news briefing.  [Reuters via reader tip]

You can read the rest at the link.

How China's 'Great Green Wall' will have a limited impact on climate change https://t.co/kmMDbpG1rg pic.twitter.com/2S9flHO4yh

— The Telegraph (@Telegraph) November 29, 2015

It looks like the Chinese just wanted to send a reminder to the Japanese that they have the capability to reach and touch them if need be:

Japan scrambled jets after 11 Chinese military planes flew near southern Japanese islands during what Beijing said was a drill to improve its long-range combat abilities, reports said Saturday.

The planes — eight bombers, two intelligence gathering planes and one early-warning aircraft — flew near Miyako and Okinawa on Friday without violating Japan’s airspace, the Japanese defence ministry said in a statement released on Friday.

Some of them flew between the two islands while others made flights close to neighbouring islands, the ministry said.

A Chinese air force spokesman said several types of planes, including H-6K bombers, were involved in Friday’s drill over the western Pacific, China’s Xinhua news agency reported.

Shen Jinke said such open sea exercises had improved the force’s long-distance combat abilities, according to Xinhua.

While there were no further comments from the Japanese ministry, the Yomiuri Shimbun reported that it was “unusual” for China to dispatch such a large fleet close to Japan’s airspace and the ministry was analysing the purpose of the mission.  [Korea Herald]

You can read the rest at the link.

Arguments Open in Philippine Case Against China's South China Sea Claims https://t.co/EhN0j2jDFO pic.twitter.com/kT4rJ6TiDM

— The Diplomat (@Diplomat_APAC) November 24, 2015

Here is another example of small, but still significant engagement with the Chinese military:

Three Chinese navy ships will stop in Hawaii on the final leg of an around-the-world deployment meant to show China’s expanding global military capability, but also highlighting ongoing relations between the United States and People’s Liberation Army despite disagreement in the South China Sea.

Chinese media reported the destroyer Jinan, frigate Yiyang and oiler Qiandaohu will stop in Acapulco, Mexico, and then Hawaii following a port call in Cuba. The flotilla also made China’s first navy visit to the East Coast earlier this month, visiting Naval Station Mayport in Florida and conducting a passing exercise with U.S. Navy ships.

The “20th Chinese naval escort task force” started the deployment Aug. 23, after completing civil ship escort missions in the Gulf of Aden and off the Somali coast. The ships have since visited Sudan, Egypt, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, Poland, Portugal and other nations.  [Stars & Stripes]

You can read more at the link.

I totally agree with these military exchanges because it reduces tensions and suspicion between two countries usually viewed as rivals.  Hopefully cooperation will continue to build in other areas between the US and China as well:

Army medic Sgt. Leslie Peterson hesitated to answer when a medic from the Chinese military asked a basic question about how Peterson would care for a soldier badly wounded in battle.

“Can I answer that?” Peterson asked a higher-ranking U.S. soldier.

Peterson was given a blessing to respond. Then she continued her demonstration that won applause from a couple dozen visitors at Joint Base Lewis-McChord on Friday.

She was a hit with this contingent from China’s People’s Liberation Army. But her hesitation underscored the newness of an unusual military exchange at JBLM that’s connecting soldiers from two armies usually characterized as rivals.

The exchange this week brought about 80 soldiers from the People’s Liberation Army to a military base in the continental U.S. for the first time. It marked a progression in an 11-year sequence of formal exchanges between the two armies focused on preparing for natural disasters.

Leaders from both countries view disaster preparation as an area where they can cooperate and build trust, possibly reducing the likelihood of an armed conflict in East Asia.  [Stars & Stripes]

You can read the rest at the link.

'China, U.S. holding back to conserve strength" https://t.co/pH1awUIZbN #China #U.S. #rivalry #geopolitics

— The Korea Herald 코리아헤럴드 (@TheKoreaHerald) November 19, 2015

Did China Try Restricting US Bombers in the South China Sea? https://t.co/ErACSvWcs6 pic.twitter.com/MdJVu15Y36

— The Diplomat (@Diplomat_APAC) November 14, 2015

China knows they have a huge disadvantage with the US in regards to space based sensors, imagery and communications and anti-satellite weapons is the way it is hoping to even the playing field.  However, if during a conflict they decided to extend the war into space the debris fields caused by them destroying satellites would make many of the orbits used by everyone on Earth unusable:

China recently conducted a flight test of a new missile capable of knocking out U.S. satellites as part of Beijing’s growing space warfare arsenal.

The test of a Dong Neng-3 exoatmospheric vehicle was carried out Oct. 30 from China’s Korla Missile Test Complex in western China, said two defense officials familiar with reports of the test.

A Chinese press report also provided details of what was said to be a missile defense interceptor flight test carried out Nov. 1. Photos of the missile’s contrails were posted online.

However, the defense officials said the DN-3 is primarily a direct-ascent missile designed to ram into satellites and destroy them, even if intelligence assessments hold that the weapon has some missile defense capabilities.

The DN-3 flight test was the eighth time China carried out an anti-satellite missile test. An earlier test occurred in July 2014, which China also asserted was a missile defense test.

State Department and Pentagon officials declined to comment on the anti-satellite test.

A Chinese Embassy spokesman said: “I don’t have detailed information about the missile test you mentioned.”

“China advocates for the peaceful use of outer space, and opposes space weaponization or arms race in space,” the spokesman said in an email.

A State official referred to a speech from February by Frank Rose, assistant secretary of State for arms control, verification and compliance, who commented on the 2014 test.

“Despite China’s claims that this was not an ASAT [anti-satellite] test; let me assure you the United States has high confidence in its assessment, that the event was indeed an ASAT test,” Rose said.  [Business Insider]

You can read the rest at the link.

https://twitter.com/pearswick/status/661076461978124288