Tag: United States

Chinese Internet posters are supposedly going bonkers over the fact that a US Navy ship conducted a freedom of navigation patrol through the South China Sea which the Chinese government ridiculously claims is part of China:

On Oct. 27, the high-stakes maritime game of chicken that has been playing out in the South China Sea came to a head. In a long-discussed freedom of navigation patrol, the United States sailed the USS Lassen, a guided missile destroyer, within 12 miles of artificial islands that China has built amid territorial disputes in the South China Sea. China tracked and warned the U.S. vessel; the operation concluded without incident and prompted swift condemnation from China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. But after weeks of tough government rhetoric claiming that China would not stand for what it views as a violation of its territorial sovereignty, Chinese social media voices are now mocking what many perceive as a spineless official response.  [Foreign Policy]

Despite all the online venom to attack the US ship one Chinese Internet user left a popular post which accurately reflects what I think is going on:

China’s shrill online nationalists may dominate the web in the aftermath of a flashpoint, but while common, such online outrage has not led to government action in the past. And some netizens harbor more nuanced perspectives. One particularly discerning Weibo user, who identified himself as a 22-year-old native of China’s northeastern Shandong province, also seemed to take the long view of the South China Sea, noting the behind-the-scenes machinations that make the region so complex. “This seems like a game,” wrote the user in a popular comment. “Not only have both countries maintained their reputations, neither country has suffered any losses.” Another observed somewhat sardonically that the situation, all told, was “well managed.” The user noted that China had “gotten rid of the U.S. ship, maintained its sovereignty, and hasn’t worsened the situation. Afterwards, it can be used as an excuse for militarization in the South China Sea.”

Like I have said before the US’s and China’s interests in the South China Sea do no necessarily come into conflict.  From the US perspective we want freedom of navigation through the SCS.  From the Chinese perspective they want strategic space to defend the sea lanes leading to the southeastern China and to a lesser extent the fishing and mineral rights.  As long as each side respects the others interests in the SCS there is no reason for conflict unless the Chinese government is stupid enough to listen to hateful commenters on the Internet.

Despite ups and downs, the China-US relationship has largely been improving: http://t.co/1gj2WpZmot pic.twitter.com/61AMQzeJY9

— China US Focus (@ChinaUSFocus) October 2, 2015

At U.N., Pyongyang puts it to U.S. to agree to peace treaty, not armistice, to ease tensions | The Japan Times http://t.co/ZuUxKIxBZD

— NorthKoreaRealTime (@BuckTurgidson79) October 2, 2015

It looks like whatever team the US military put together for the international military Olympics currently being held in South Korea wasn’t very good:

The K-league football club Sangju Sangmu has defeated the United States 7-0 in its opening match of 2015 CISM World Games Korea, an international sports event for military service members.

Sangmu, the sports division of South Korea’s military, overwhelmed the American team in the first Group A match of football on Wednesday in Moongyeong, North Gyeongsang Province.

Forward Cho Don-gun and midfielder Lee Seung-ki scored two goals each for the host team.

The 2015 CISM World Games officially kick off on Friday and continue until October 11. About 73-hundred soldiers from some 120 countries will participate in the international sports event, which will be held in eight cities and counties.  [KBS World Radio]

You can read the rest at the link.

These are just words on the part of the Chinese leader which are important, but I am more interested to see what action they would take in response to the next North Korean provocation:

In an apparent warning to North Korea, Chinese President Xi Jinping said Friday he opposes any action that violates U.N. Security Council resolutions as he and President Barack Obama reaffirmed their commitment to a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.

Xi made the remark during a joint press conference after summit talks with Obama at the White House as concerns have grown that North Korea could launch a long-range rocket or conduct a nuclear test next month in violation of U.N. resolutions.

“We reaffirm our commitment to realize the complete and verifiable denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a peaceful way and we oppose any action that might cause tension in the Korean peninsula or violate U.N. Security Council resolutions,” Xi said.

Xi did not mention North Korea by name, but it was pretty clear that he was referring to Pyongyang.

It is highly unusual for a Chinese leader to publicly issue such a warning, given that Beijing has been reluctant to criticize North Korea and has usually urged all sides to exercise calm and restraint when it comes to tensions on the Korean Peninsula.”

Xi also said that a 2005 agreement on North Korea’s denuclearizations and U.N. resolutions should be “implemented in full and all relevant parties should work together to firmly advance the denuclearization process of the Korean peninsula and maintain peace and stability so as to achieve enduring peace and stability in Northeast Asia.”  [Yonhap]

You can read the rest at the link.

I would assume that the South Korean government was expecting this kind of criticism from their political opposition and had a quick response available.  There is just no way that the US military would bring Japanese troops on to the peninsula without the direct approval of the ROK government:

South Korea is capable of turning down any U.S. request for the entry of Japanese armed forces onto the Korean Peninsula, Defense Minister Han Min-koo said Monday in his latest efforts to defuse concerns over Japan’s rearmament moves.

Japan passed a package of security bills into law in the wee hours of Saturday, unshackling its previously self defense-only armed forces from limitations imposed after World War II and empowering them to fight in overseas battles.

The rearmament step has sparked concerns here that Japanese forces could join U.S. troops stationed in South Korea unilaterally in the event of a war with North Korea.

Rep. Lee Choon-suk of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy raised the issue of unwanted Japanese forces during a parliamentary audit, asking Han if the country could turn down the U.S. military’s request for the entry of Japanese forces in the event of a North Korea-waged war.  [Korea Times]

You can read the rest at the link.

It looks like the US and its allies should open a new front with the South China Sea issue and get the name of this body of water officially changed just like the South Koreans have been trying to do for years with the Sea of Japan:

In a rare appearance together, American and Chinese admirals sat alongside one another to present their views on maritime security in the Asia-Pacific region. The audience came to hear about one thing, the South China Sea, and China’s commander was clear: “It belongs to China.”

There was political theater and a few one-liners, as the panel remained cordial and the admirals were all smiles during handshakes before and after. But the tension was real and the messages direct.

“The South China Sea, as the name indicated, is a sea area. It belongs to China,” said Vice Adm. Yuan Yubai, who commands the North Sea Fleet for the People’s Liberation Army Navy.  [Defense One]

You can read the whole thing at the link, but what I found most fascinating about the article was how direct these admirals were talking to each other about the issues in the South China Sea.

If anyone is wondering below is what is being taught now a days in America’s colleges about 9/11.  It is one thing to present an opposing view, but if students are penalized by the instructor for not agreeing with it as described in the article, than I have a problem with that.  Has anyone recently been through a college course that teaches such anti-US propaganda liked described in the article?:

Not all of us will be mourning 9/11 victims and their families this Friday on the 14th anniversary of the attacks. Hundreds of college kids across the country will instead be taught to sympathize with the terrorists.

That’s because their America-hating leftist professors are systematically indoctrinating them into believing it’s all our fault, that the US deserved punishment for “imperialism” — and the kids are too young to remember or understand what really happened that horrific day.

Case in point is a freshman-level English class taught at several major universities across the country called “The Literature of 9/11” — which focuses almost entirely on writings from the perspective of the Islamic terrorists, rather than the nearly 3,000 Americans who were slaughtered by them.  The syllabus, which includes books like “The Reluctant Fundamentalist” and “Poems from Guantanamo: Detainees Speak,” portray terrorists as “freedom fighters” driven by oppressive US foreign policies.  [NY Post]

You can read the rest at the link.

A letter from #JiangZemin (not #XiJinping) thanking US for WW2 help was presented to US Ambassador in late August. http://t.co/AhUg1weHGx

— Chris Horton 何貴森 (@heguisen) September 6, 2015

Here we go again with the usual rhetoric from North Korea during every Joint exercise:

Anchor: South Korea has made clear that suspending its joint military exercises with the U.S. cannot be a precondition for dialogue with Pyongyang. Seoul revealed the stance after North Korea said that if the United States wants to engage in dialogue it must stop taking part in the joint drills.
Our Bae Joo-yon has more.

Report: Seoul’s Defense Ministry said Thursday that ending South Korea-U.S. joint military exercises cannot be a precondition for dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang.

The ministry Spokesman Kim Min-seok told reporters that the joint drill is an annual event of a defensive nature.

Kim’s remarks came shortly after North Korea said the United States must stop its joint military exercises with South Korea if it wants to engage in dialogue with Pyongyang.

Kim said the joint exercises are necessary to prepare against the North’s provocations, adding that they are akin to a student preparing for a test.

Earlier on Wednesday, a spokesperson for the North’s Foreign Ministry said that if the U.S. abandons hostile activities, including the exercises, and chooses to walk a different path, then it would be possible to engage in dialogue and resolve many issues.  [KBS World]

You can read more at the link, but basically the North Koreans are trying to put the blame on the US for why talks cannot be started.