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China's military and Sun Tzu: What every American should know
brookesnews ^ | 01.19.04 | James Henry

Posted on 01/19/2004 6:19:22 AM PST by Dr. Marten

China's military and Sun Tzu: What every American should know

James Henry
BrookesNews.Com

Monday 19 January 2004

The Chinese military is extremely nationalistic in the worst possible way. There seems to be little doubt that China sees Asia and the Pacific region as its own special sphere of influence, an interest threatened by a powerful American presence.

This is common knowledge in the intelligence community. For example, Al Santoli, an analyst at the American Foreign Policy Council, went public with it several years ago. Clinton was even briefed on the Chinese military's ambitions and nationalistic fervor — and a fat lot of good it did.

As one insider sighed: "He doesn't seem to care." And this is why he allowed so much advanced technology with powerful military applications to casually pass into Chinese hands. Imagine the tragic consequences for Britain if Chamberlain* had allowed its radar technology to be sold to Nazi Germany so he could fatten his political war-chest. And yet, that is exactly what Clinton did.

Despite China's aggressive behavior, Clinton ordered the Pentagon to strengthen contacts with the PLA. This was one helluva a one-way street and was guaranteed to significantly improve the PLA's battlefield tactics and refine its use of technology. And what did Americans get out of it? Don't even think about it. But this has all happened before.

The Treaty of Versailles forced Germany to dismantle its armaments factories. It also limited its army to 100,000 men and stripped it of all heavy weapons, especially tanks. What had been the Imperial German Army was to be transformed by General Hans von Seeckt into the Reichswehr, a lightly armed militia.

However, Seeckt schemed to evade the treaty's conditions and Lenin's Russia was the main means by which he did it. Trotsky was keen on a military deal with Germany that would allow German tank crews, pilots, etc., to train in Russia and German officers to train Russian troops. The Germans would also send in specialists to rebuild Russia's factories for the production of tanks, planes and other military hardware.** These activities were unofficially affirmed by the 1922 Rapallo treaty that culminated in the infamous 1939 Nazi-Soviet pact.

How did they get away with it? Well, in a sense, they did not. Not only did the French know that secret aspects of the treaty were intended to violate the Treaty of Versailles but British intelligence informed the British government of what was going on. Moreover, shortly after the war, Brigadier-General J. H. Morgan warned London that German militarism was as strong as ever. But only the French were prepared to heed the warning, so deep was their fear of a resurgent and unrepentant Germany.

Despite intelligence warnings and palpably false statements by the German government, the British government treated the French as paranoid. Amazing as it will seem to most readers, Germany and Russia's cozy military relationship continued, with the odd squabble, right up to the Nazi attack on Russia. No wonder Stalin was stunned by Hitler's surprise attack.

Strip this sorry story to the bare bones and we find a similar tale unfolded under the Clinton administration. The administration's attitude toward Beijing is strikingly similar to that of Moscow's toward Berlin up to June 22, 1941. It too was a one-way street, with the ironic exception of tank design.

The Germans learnt all they needed to know about the Red Army and its capability. That knowledge almost lost Europe to Nazi barbarism. But the Clinton kindergarten rabble, stuck in its '60s time warp, was unable to comprehend any of this. To their mentality, there is no history, there is only the moment — nothing else counts. This is why it found nothing wrong with selling out to the Chinese military, of making arrangements that endangered national security.

What is there to fear? they asked. Everything, is the answer. Only those ignorant of history, completely untouched by war and severed from all moral moorings could say of powerful tyrants: What is there to fear?

About 2,500 years ago, SunTzu wrote what is probably the world's oldest military manual. Every Chinese officer has studied it. He began with the statement: "The art of war is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin." This is what the likes of Bismarck and Seeckt thought and it is what the Chinese military think for no militaristic state can think otherwise. This is what he said of leaders: "The general (commander in chief) is the bulwark of the state. If the bulwark is complete at all points, the state will be strong. If the bulwark is defective, the state will be weak."

Just try comparing Clinton, or any of the current crop of presidential wannabes, with Truman or Eisenhower. The next quote was definitely written for Democrats: "By attempting to govern an army in the same way as he administers a kingdom, being ignorant of the conditions which obtain in an army, he causes restlessness among the troops."

This quote also sums up those 'feminist' fanatics whose idea of sexual equality in the military is to have men and women share the same body bags. Wondering why the Chinese military are keen on cooperation with the Pentagon? Sun Tzu has the answer: "If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a 100 battles."

Sun Tzu had some insightful things to say about espionage. "What enables the wise sovereign and the good general to strike and conquer and achieve things beyond the reach of ordinary men is foreknowledge." Well, Clinton certainly gave Beijing plenty of that. Though Sun Tzu divided agents into five classes we need only concern ourselves with what he called "inward spies".

These were the officials of an enemy state. Spies were so important to Sun Tzu that he considered no one should be better rewarded. I am not suggesting that Clinton and his kindergarten pals were Chinese agents just because they were liberally rewarded, far from it: only that they have behaved in a way that would classify their actions as those of "inward spies" because their indifference to national security had the same consequences.

*Chamberlain was a naive man and certainly blinded himself to Hitler's nature and real intentions. But despite his errors of judgement, he was always the patriot who genuinely cared about his country.

**The Germans also set up holding companies in a number of countries to manufacture weapons.

 


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Editorial; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; Philosophy; Politics/Elections; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: china; chinastuff; chinesemilitary; clintonlegacy; suntzu
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To: HankReardon
I've read most of the books regarding the potential for conflict with China.

Here are some links regarding a few:

The Dragon's Fury Series - My own fictional series about a future war scenario

The China Threat - How the People's Republic Targets America - The book you spoke of.

Unrestricted Warfare: China's Plan to Destroy America - From internal PLA documents.

The Cox Report - China and National Security

Seeds of Fire: China and the Story behind the Attack on America

Red Dragon Rising: Communist China's Military Threat to America

The Coming Conflict with China

Hegemon: China's Plan to Dominate Asia and the World

41 posted on 01/19/2004 8:20:42 AM PST by Jeff Head
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To: HankReardon
Federation of American Scientists is a bit left of center politicially, but they're good to go as far as proliferation issues. Check out the data on Chinese ballistic missiles here.
42 posted on 01/19/2004 8:23:51 AM PST by Steel Wolf ("Inveniemus viam aut faciemus" - We will either find a way or make one.)
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To: Jeff Head
WOW! Thanks Jeff! Read some of those.
43 posted on 01/19/2004 8:24:38 AM PST by HankReardon
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To: HankReardon
They clearly had ballistic capabilities before Clinton. That is not in dispute...they just did not have effective staging or targeting capbilities...or the manufacturing to produce what they did have in any significant numbers. All of that basically rendered whatever ballistic capabilities they had relatively moot.

During the Clinton years...all of that was corrected for the Chinese military.

Here's another good book for you in this regard:

Year of the Rat: How Bill Clinton Compromised U.S. Security for Chinese Cash

44 posted on 01/19/2004 8:26:27 AM PST by Jeff Head
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To: John H K
Hey John, this not the DU. When you make an assertion here you will be asked to back yourself up. Please direct me to evidence that the communist Chinese were able to hit American cities with ballistic mislles as early as 1981.
45 posted on 01/19/2004 8:26:57 AM PST by HankReardon
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To: Steel Wolf
Of course, it would help if I used the right link. This is the link to their ICBMs , as opposed to their theater missiles.
46 posted on 01/19/2004 8:27:21 AM PST by Steel Wolf ("Inveniemus viam aut faciemus" - We will either find a way or make one.)
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To: John H K
I'm just curious why nobody cares about Russian and Israeli technology going to the Chinese, when what the Chinese have gotten from the US is trivial compared to the above two countries?

The republicans used to care, but that was before bush. The sino-soviet alliance of the 1950-s to early 1960's was very much a concern to republicans, who were conservative at the time.

Conservatives still care and still are against aiding a powerful nation like communist china in any way. But the liberal republicans of today, and the free traders who are only concerned with making more profit regardless of national security dont care.

47 posted on 01/19/2004 8:29:27 AM PST by waterstraat
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To: Jeff Head
read it! Very good book. And all these books have in detail their sources, they back up their facts.
48 posted on 01/19/2004 8:29:55 AM PST by HankReardon
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To: notorious vrc
It seems that Sun Tzu's philosophies are widely accepted as "truths" or "laws" governing warfare. The Greeks and Romans laid siege to walled or fortified cities and the last I checked, they ruled the world at certain times during their reign.

The Germans succesfully practiced Siege of walled cities in Belgium, in August 1914, specifically Liege and Namur.

I wonder what Sun Tzu would say regarding modern warfare technology: aircraft, GPS guided bombs, strategic weapons etc. Am I the only one around here who thinks that Sun Tzu is now overrated?

I tend to agree. A lot of the Sun Tzu'isms seem to me like the utterances of Chancy Gardner in the Peter Sellers movie "Being There". Sun says "know thy enemy" or "practice deception" and everyone gushes over how wise the old guy is.

49 posted on 01/19/2004 8:30:34 AM PST by 2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten
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To: Dr. Marten
At any rate this article is so much Chinese scaremongering. Its very light on details, and very heavy on

Nazis
Clinton
Sun Tzu

Certainly all three merit concern, in their own way. This article does little except beat the dead horses of Chinese nationalism and fear of suprise attacks, with a sprinkle of Chinese military philosophy (which, in case anyone hasn't noticed, stopped working for them some time ago)

50 posted on 01/19/2004 8:32:35 AM PST by Steel Wolf ("Inveniemus viam aut faciemus" - We will either find a way or make one.)
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To: HankReardon
I give one specific name as the greatest traitor in U.S. histrory. Can you do the same? That was the question.

No, not yet, clinton is still number 1. But if we give the 10 million illegals in the country the right to vote and let them stay here instead of deporting them, I will have a name for you.

51 posted on 01/19/2004 8:33:54 AM PST by waterstraat
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To: HankReardon
The Chinese DF-5 missile, with a range of over 12000 KM was produced in the 1980's. However, it suffered from the deficinies I have indicated.

Here is a link to it's information:

DF-5

Compare that to their newer missile, now in production, which benefits from Chinese advancements due to their own research and our technology transfer.

DF-31

And here is the next generation that they currently are developing.

DF-41

52 posted on 01/19/2004 8:35:00 AM PST by Jeff Head
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To: notorious vrc
Sun Tzu's armies probably subsisted more off the surrounding countryside while Greek and Roman armies, in the instances where they laid siege, had a re-supply source. The arguement against attacking walled fortifications is sage when scavenging or with tenuous supply lines.
53 posted on 01/19/2004 8:36:07 AM PST by Axenolith (<tag>)
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To: 2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten
Sun Tzu's point wasn't to avoid siege warfare, it was to avoid walled cities you didn't have to take. For example, if you have the opportunity to bypass several large cities and strike directly at the enemy's capital, do so.

If you can reach the entire body, go for the throat.

His point about walled cities is that taking them can be slow and costly, and warfare should be quick and suprising. Also, he said that if a large army takes a city, it will be seen as no great feat of arms, but if it finds itself in a long 'quagmire' of a siege, it will incur scorn and contempt.

As I recall, he felt that if you had to siege, siege, but don't do so if you can obtain your goals in another way. Our assault on Baghdad is actually a pretty good example of this. Rather than trying to sieze the entire city block by block, we made a dash for the throat and took it in one blow.

54 posted on 01/19/2004 8:38:51 AM PST by Steel Wolf ("Inveniemus viam aut faciemus" - We will either find a way or make one.)
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To: Steel Wolf
Thank you, if that is right the Chinese DF-5 went 12,000 miles in, what was it? 1981? Sounds like a lot of failure, technological inaccuracies. When I'm wrong I want to know it, thanks.
55 posted on 01/19/2004 8:38:55 AM PST by HankReardon
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To: waterstraat
I thought maybe some one might suggest the treason committed by Julius and Ethel Rosenburg was greater than the treason committed by President Bill Clinton. Or that of General Benedict Arnold.
56 posted on 01/19/2004 8:41:10 AM PST by HankReardon
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To: Dr. Marten
If the author thought it was bad with bill clinton selling out America for campaign cash, wait until a real ideologue - Hillary Clinton - squeaks into office (*shudder*).

Then the Hitler/Stalin comparisons will really be valid!

57 posted on 01/19/2004 8:41:16 AM PST by Gritty ("Only force will preserve liberty. Give up that force, and you are inevitably ruined-Patrick Henry)
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To: Dr. Marten
bump
58 posted on 01/19/2004 8:42:43 AM PST by Centurion2000 (Resolve to perform what you must; perform without fail that what you resolve.)
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To: Jeff Head
It could be said that they really don't need to have the missile technology to deliver nuclear destruction, when they have the hundreds of thousands of shipping containers delivered to our shores on a regular basis. A launch would identify them as the source and therefore result in retribution. On the other hand, one or more nuclear bombs in conexes would be virtually blameless in any port as few could determine the actual source after the detonation.
59 posted on 01/19/2004 8:42:56 AM PST by Brad C.
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To: Brad C.
Good thing our enemies know that today America is not all huff and bluster.
60 posted on 01/19/2004 8:44:55 AM PST by HankReardon
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