Who Would Win A Conflict In The South China Sea: The Infographic

Zero Hedge ^ | 05/27/15

[Enlightened1]

Now, with Beijing set to enforce what is effectively a no-fly zone over its new sovereign ‘territory’ we bring you the following graphic from WSJ which shows that when it comes to sheer size, China’s air force and Navy are beyond compare.

China’s promise to beef up its naval capabilities to prevent further “meddling” and “provocative actions” by rivals in the South China Sea is a daunting prospect for most of its neighbors, which already view Beijing’s fast-improving armed forces with trepidation...

As a recent Pentagon review of China’s military modernization drive noted, “China is investing in capabilities designed to defeat adversary power projection and counter third-party—including U.S.—intervention during a crisis or conflict.” In practice, that means hundreds of ballistic and cruise missiles positioned near the coast to deter Japanese or American warships from coming anywhere near Chinese territory. China has a substantial submarine fleet as well, piling on more risk for enemy ships.

[SampleMan]

Sometimes you kill bad guys one at a time.

Frankly, the South Koreans can handle the Norks on their own.

[texas booster]

Ping to someone who actually knows a thing or two about the subject of naval warfare.

[reed13k]

Hmmm - no ROC or South Korean assets. How about the Aussies - think they might have a say in the matter? I’ll spot the PRC the NORKS in return.

Quality over Quantity - disparity isn’t what it used to be, but it’s still there.

[G Larry]

None of this matters with our CIC caving at the first chance.

[peyton randolph]

“I don’t see USA moving because of all the debt we owe China.”

*****

Not that Barack Hussein Obama would do it (p#ss be upon him), but repudiation of debt would be a reason for the U.S. to escalate.

[JimRed]

How quickly could we transfer other ships to the area?

You are assuming that the CINC would even authorize an engagement.

[nomad]

Is that before or after the world`s incinerated in a nuclear holocaust?

[Shadow44]

Probably because of the One China policy and the assumption that the ROC won’t risk invasion by antagonizing the mainland.

[greeneyes]

If this chart is comparing the entire Chinese forces to just one strike group, that’s comparing raspberries to watermelons, and pretty misleading.

What value is there in misrepresenting our strength and inflating theirs?

[mad_as_he$$]

This situation was predicted by Dale Brown in 1998.

http://www.amazon.com/Fatal-Terrain-Dale-Brown/dp/0425162605

[aegiscg47]

I'm not sure where to even start with this as obviously this graphic has been designed to show a certain point of view. For one, the number of CVBGs can fluctuate and more can be added to that theater in a matter of weeks, especially if tensions have been building. Air strength could rise significantly in just a few days by basing to Japan and South Kore with existing squadrons from other parts of the globe. There are far more submarines available and they are a magnitude in quality difference from their Chinese counterparts.

As far as the Chinese go, their CVBG is nowhere near ready for wartime operations, their fleet assets are fairly spread out, and the combat aircraft listed are based all over the entire country. It's not like one CAG would be facing all 2100 at once. Also, as stated above, the readiness of many of these units needs to be questioned. I'm not saying that this is not a major buildup of Chinese forces or that it does not present a threat, but the U.S. and its allies in the theater are hardly defenseless or outclassed.

[minnesota_bound]

Many other countries who are enemies of China. China would not be able to project for long.

[SunkenCiv]

But this is China, a nation that couldn't project military power if it was inside a movie theater.

LOL! I'm definitely jottin' that down...

[Timber Rattler]

They’re stuck in the 1970s still.

All the computers and electronics in this country say otherwise. Where do you think everything is manufactured these days?

[texas booster]

How are our logistics in the Eastern Pacific?

The biggest battle facing us is to keep our supply lines open.

Have been told that China is prepared to let us exhaust our supplies in our CVBGs and deny us resupply.

I understand that we can expend a fairly large quantity of armaments quickly, if need be, without going nuclear.

[FreeInWV]

I’m not sure how eager we would be to move a carrier strike force into a hostile area with so many subs and air superiority.

[Timber Rattler]

We have 20 they barely have 1.

We actually have 10, three or four of which are undergoing refit at any given time.

[Jack Hammer]

There’s certainly one major upside to this scenario: since our corpses would all be glowing in the dark, we’d save an enormous amount of electricity expended on street lights.

[marron]

Part of the equation has to be bags of money under the table.

I suspect a fair percentage of our leadership has been compromised.

[sergeantdave]

Zero Hedge publishes this ridiculous crap in order to get hits on its rapidly sinking website. Trolling for Google ad dollars.