|
Post by Admin on Mar 14, 2015 22:28:21 GMT
To win the war, China has to seize territory and then hold it against the US/Japanese counterattack. There will be two main theatres of operation -- the Senkaku and Yaeyama island chains in the East China Sea and the Paracel and Spratly Islands south of Hainan Island in the South China Sea. In the East China Sea, China claims the uninhabited Senkaku Islands and has made noises about being the rightful owners of the Ryuku and Yaeyama Island Chains. This part of the world is complicated for China in that there are US bases on Okinawa in the Ryukus. They could leave the US bases out of their attack in the expectation that President Obama will renege on his commitment to come to Japan’s aid if China attempts to seize the Senkaku Islands. More likely they will attack US bases in the region at least as far out as Guam on the basis that the United States will be entering the war anyway and they are better off getting a surprise attack in first. Also, they can’t be number one on the planet until they have defeated the United States. So their pride will be a big part of it. If China is going to seize the Senkaku Islands, it would take only a little bit more effort, morally and militarily, to seize the Yaeyama Islands at the same time. Part of the preparations for this operation includes building the Shuimen airbase on a ridge on the mainland at 26° 56’ N, 120° 05’ E. More recently an expeditionary base for helicopters is under construction in the Nanji Islands at 27° 27’ N, 121° 04’ E. China has been conditioning the Japanese by having their fishing vessels run incursions into Japanese territory with each incursion lasting two hours. In late 2014, the fishing transgressions extended to the Osagawa Islands further east. In the East China Sea, China is likely to start the war off with helicopters landing troops on the Senkaku and Yaeyama Islands quickly followed by a swarm of coast guard and commercial vessels to dilute the targeting of the naval vessels among them. They may also use fishing vessels to land Special Forces further east in the Osagawa Islands. These troops would be used sacrificially to dilute the response to the main thrust. That would be why China is conditioning Japan to get used to fishing vessels making incursions in the Osagawas. China would also be attacking US and Japanese bases with intermediate range ballistic missiles -- everything that would throw the Japanese off balance and make the problem of the Chinese attack seem overwhelming. The US Marines are confident that they could recapture the Senkaku Islands once control of the sea and air was assured. Japanese and US forces would have no desire to set foot on Chinese territory. After the initial Chinese onslaught, the campaign would settle down to a blockade of shipping to China conducted beyond the reach of Chinese aircraft. China wouldn’t run out of oil because they are building a large stockpile and they could easily cut consumption down to the level of domestic production of 4 million barrels per day. But 26% of the economy is export-related and so economic activity would collapse. The effect of the blockade in the rest of the world would be a major boost to economic activity as companies tried to make good the loss of Chinese supply. In the South China Sea, China would declare an Air Defence Identification Zone and enforce it using the airbase they are currently building on Fiery Cross Reef. They may attempt to seize other countries’ bases in the Spratleys or they might just sink their ships and starve them out. The problem for China is that the South China Sea is a natural kill box for Chinese shipping. On the western side, Vietnam has upgraded its radars (with assistance from the French company Thales) and has an inventory of about 500 anti-ship missiles. Singapore’s air force is likely to assist Vietnam and stage through Cam Ranh Bay with their 36 F-15s. On the eastern side, the US has plenty of basing opportunities in the Philippines. Once the airfield on Fiery Cross Reef was degraded, Chinese shipping would have to rely upon air cover coming from bases 1,000 km to the northwest. Eventually the Chinese air defences will be worn down and the Chinese ships will be defenseless. Then will come bombardment of the bases they have built and it will be all over. The US Marines now have a base at Oyster Bay on the western side of Palawan Island in the Philippines in preparation for this battle. If the Chinese are particularly intractable, then the US might go on to capture Woody Island in the Paracel Group. That will be a lot tougher in that it is only 300 km from Hainan Island and the depth of Chinese basing behind it on the mainland.
|
|
|
Post by Admin on Mar 17, 2015 22:23:51 GMT
An atlas published by the Chinese government in 1969 identifies the Senkaku Islands by their Japanese name, new evidence that the group of islands in Okinawa Prefecture is inherently Japanese territory, the Foreign Ministry said Monday. The ministry has posted the maps in a section featuring the Senkaku Islands on its website. The map is part of an atlas published in 1969 by the then Chinese State Bureau of Surveying and Mapping, the equivalent of the Geospatial Information Authority of Japan. In addition to referring to the overall group of islands as the “Senkaku Islands” in Japanese characters, the name of Uotsuri Island, the westernmost island in the group, is also written in Japanese characters. Yoshiaki Harada, a Liberal Democratic Party member of the House of Representatives, obtained the atlas from a former Foreign Ministry bureaucrat and showed it as evidence during his interpellation at the lower house Budget Committee meeting on Feb. 23. Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida responded to Harada’s question by saying: “This is valuable data. By utilizing various data, we must continue to strategically send our message abroad.” The Chinese government began claiming the Senkaku Islands in 1971 after the then U.N. Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East — presently the U.N. Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific — released a report in May 1969 that said oil reserves may exist in the islands’ seabed. At that point, Beijing began calling the group of islands “Diaoyu.” “China had changed its name for the islands since it started claiming sovereignty over them. This indicates that China regarded the islands as belonging to Japan back then, and will serve as corroborating evidence to Japan’s assertions,” said a senior foreign ministry official.Speech
|
|
|
Post by Admin on May 16, 2015 20:56:24 GMT
US Secretary of State John Kerry says he is concerned by the pace and scope of China's reclamation projects in contested areas of the South China Sea. He was speaking at a press conference with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi in Beijing. China claims almost the whole of the South China Sea, resulting in overlapping claims with Brunei, Taiwan, the Philippines, Vietnam and Malaysia. Mr Wang said that China was determined to safeguard its sovereignty. Mr Kerry is due to hold a series of meetings with Chinese President Xi Jinping and other top government officials in the Chinese capital. US officials had been briefing in advance that Mr Kerry was planning to deliver a stern message to China about what is alleged to be its huge land reclamation operation around some of the disputed reefs and islands it controls in the South China Sea. At the joint press conference, Mr Kerry said that one of the strengths of the modern US China relationship was that the two sides could speak candidly and he said he urged China, through Mr Wang, to take actions to reduce tension. Ahead of the meeting though, China had already pushed back at any suggestion it should moderate its behaviour, with state media accusing the US of "thinly veiled hypocrisy". The conflicting claims to island chains in the South China Sea, like the Spratlys and Paracels, go back decades. But the US concern is that new Chinese assets, like military capable runways, will alter the balance of power. Speaking after his meeting with Mr Wang, Mr Kerry said he "urged China... to take actions that will join with everybody in helping to reduce tensions and increase the prospect of a diplomatic solution". Mr Wang replied that "the determination of the Chinese side to safeguard our own sovereignty and territorial integrity is as firm as a rock and it is unshakeable". He described the development work in the South China Sea as something that fell "within the scope of China's sovereignty". But he also said that China and the US had "more common interests than differences", urging both sides "to act in the spirit of mutual respect, seeking common ground while shelving differences".
|
|
|
Post by Admin on May 20, 2015 20:49:55 GMT
Two Chinese professors, who for years worked as engineers in the USA, are among six Chinese nationals accused by federal prosecutors of economic espionage sponsored by their home government in the alleged theft of radio frequency filter technology developed by two U.S. companies. The professors, who attended the University of Southern California, allegedly obtained the trade secret information — designed in part to limit interference in mobile phone reception and other devices — as part of a "long-running effort'' to benefit universities and companies controlled by the Chinese government. Tianjin University professor Hao Zhang, 36, was arrested Saturday in Los Angeles shortly after stepping off a plane from China. Fellow professor Wei Pang, 35, and four other alleged co-conspirators are believed to be in China. According to the 32-count indictment, Pang and Zhang met during their doctoral studies in electrical engineering at USC. While at the university, the two conducted research related to the acoustic technology that was funded by the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, known as DARPA. Shortly after earning their doctorates in 2005, Pang was employed as an engineer in Colorado for Avago Technologies, while Zhang went to work for Skyworks Solutions Inc., in Massachusetts, the two companies that developed the proprietary trade information. The so-called FBAR technology is primarily used in mobile devices, filtering incoming and outgoing wireless signals. In addition to the consumer uses, FBAR technology has numerous applications for military and defense communications. According to the indictment, the professors and other co-conspirators prepared a business plan in 2006 and 2007 and began soliciting Chinese universities and other interests, in an effort to begin manufacturing the technology in China. In 2008, according to the indictment, Tianjin University officials traveled to San Jose to meet with Pang, Zhang and other co-conspirators, ultimately agreeing to support the professors in setting up a fabrication plant in China. The professors, meanwhile, continued to work with their respective U.S. companies while coordinating their activities with the Chinese university. The following year, according to federal prosecutors, Pang and Zhang resigned from their U.S. companies and accepted professorships with Tianjin University where a joint venture, ROFS Microsystem, was formed to mass produce the filter technology. Included in the 30-page indictment was a stream of emails allegedly containing the companies' proprietary information that was shared among the suspects. In one 2007 exchange, Pang jokingly proposed the name "Clifbaw'' for their new Chinese venture. Asked to explain the meaning, Pang allegedly referenced the stolen material in his response: "China lift BAW technology—Clifbaw. haha.'' "The defendants leveraged their access to and knowledge of sensitive U.S. technologies to illegally obtain and share U.S. trade secrets with the PRC for economic advantage," said Assistant Attorney General John Carlin, who oversees the Justice Department's National Security Division. "Economic espionage imposes great costs on American businesses, weakens the global marketplace and ultimately harms U.S. interests worldwide.''
|
|
|
Post by Admin on May 31, 2015 20:49:58 GMT
China has rejected accusations by Ashton Carter that China's actions in the South China Sea are "out of step" with international rules. The Chinese Foreign Ministry issued a six-point response on Saturday. Spokeswoman Hua Chunying said China's sovereignty and rights in the area have a historical foundation, and do not require land reclamation as justification. Second, construction on the Nansha islands - also called the Spratly islands by some countries- are within Chinese sovereignty and does not target any country. The spokeswoman explained that China is sticking to its path of peaceful development and its defensive security policy. Third, Chinese construction is based on international needs and fulfils the responsibility and obligation China shoulders as a big nation. Hua Chunying said the construction will better serve regional countries for their sailing, disaster relief and fishing in the area. Fourth, she noted that construction on islands and reefs have not caused and will not pose problems to air and sea navigation. but warned that countries should not abuse freedom of navigation. Fifth, Hua explained that the code of conduct in the South China Sea should be negotiated between China and ASEAN nations. She called on countries outside the region such as the US to respect their efforts and not complicate the process. Lastly, the spokeswoman said the South China Sea issue is not an issue between China and the US, as it does not concern the US. Hua urged the US to keep its promise not to take sides on territorial disputes, and stop making remarks that are harmful both to regional peace and stability AND to US-China relations.
|
|