Posted on 09/08/2014 8:27:39 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
Vietnam will soon have a credible naval deterrent to China in the South China Sea in the form of Kilo-class submarines from Russia, which experts say could make Beijing think twice before pushing its much smaller neighbour around in disputed waters.
A master of guerrilla warfare, Vietnam has taken possession of two of the submarines and will get a third in November under a US$2.6 billion deal agreed with Moscow in 2009. A final three are scheduled to be delivered within two years.
While communist parties rule both Vietnam and China and annual trade has risen to US$50 billion, Hanoi has long been wary of China, especially over Beijing’s claims to most of the potentially energy-rich South China Sea. Beijing’s placement of an oil rig in waters claimed by Vietnam earlier this year infuriated Hanoi but the coastguard vessels it dispatched to the platform were always chased off by larger Chinese boats.
The Vietnamese are likely to run so-called area denial operations off its coast and around its military bases in the Spratly island chain of the South China Sea once the submarines are fully operational, experts said.
That would complicate Chinese calculations over any military move against Vietnamese holdings in the Spratlys or in the event of an armed clash over disputed oil fields, even though China has a much larger navy, including a fleet of 70 submarines, they added.
“Sea denial means creating a psychological deterrent by making sure a stronger naval rival never really knows where your subs might be,” said Collin Koh of Singapore’s S Rajaratnam School of International Studies.
(Excerpt) Read more at scmp.com ...
Vietnam must be selling a lot of Ethan Allen Furniture...
“No-one should underestimate the Vietnamese “
I was just about to ping you to this thread.
I suppose someone in the VN logistics will be getting a kickback. You know, like a congressman here.
Bit of a difference between having a weapon and knowing how to properly use it.
I’m picturing one of the PLA’s new flying boats anchored near one of the atolls they’ve commandeered. One torpedo = one former flyable aircraft.
The last major ‘military’ clash China was involved in was not over land, but in the sea with Vietnam in 1988. Chinese and Vietnamese patrol boats engaged in standoffs as recently as a few months back over the Paracel Islands. Building up your land and air forces do little to strike at China’s Achilles Heel-its need for Middle Eastern oil. A handful of subs make a difference to that.
Yes, and when the Vietnamese sink a Chinese ship they will nuke Hanoi and Haiphong. And invade with a two million man army lusting for blood. A sub isn’t the answer to all of Vietnams problems.
A little research indicates that BP still has an interest in production, there.
With your mention of China's oil problems...
China won'r nuke anyone before they are ready to nuke the USA, or make the attempt. China won't invade Việt Nam on land. The Great Chinese Victory of 1979 was a severe warning that invading Việt Nam is a very expensive proposition and not cost effective. I would expect that China would, however conventionally attack Cam Ranh from the sea or the air to destroy naval facilities. I would not venture to predict the ensuing activity, however. A naval war in the East Sea would probably end up with the Vietnamese navy being pretty much wiped out but with some heavy damages to Chinese assets. China/Việt Nam is not quite the boot/bug proposition that it would seem to resemble on the map.
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