He is justifiably frightened by the looming threat.
And he likely also does not intend to annhilate their population. I for one, don't.
But I suspect the Chinese masters may not be so squeamish with regard to our population. Look to the unprovoked sneak attack by China upon our troops in the Korean War. We should simply have nuked their forces rear-areas then, rather than try and slug it out conventionally. Truman's political rules of engagement nearly cost us that war. Do you know how many people we lost in their aggression? And how many of their own troops did they heedlessly throw away in suicide attacks on us?
In that alternate approach, then, after surgically dismantling their armies... we should have dictated terms to Mao in Bejing.
Unconditional Surrender, and disband the Communist Party. Stalin would not have dared interfere. Look how he was afraid of the pilots he sent getting caught...unmasking his role in the aggression.
It was MORE than HALF CENTURY AGO! And it was not a sneak attack - Chicoms issued plenty of warnings:
[...] By late September, China had sent numerous diplomatic signals expressing its concern regarding a US occupation of North Korea. The Acting PLA chief of staff told the Indian Ambassador in Peking that China would never allow US forces to reach Chinese territory. The Indian Foreign Minister conveyed this message to the US Ambassador in New Delhi; in Washington, the British Ambassador passed the same message to the State Department. These private notices were matched by a 22 September public announcement in which the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman issued the statement "We clearly reaffirm that we will always stand on the side of the Korean people, and resolutely oppose the criminal acts of American imperialist aggression against Korea and their intrigues for expanding the war." Also during this period, communications intercepts continued to identify massive PLA troop movements from southern and central China into the Sino-Korean border areas.
Discounting the Chinese Threat
In the face of these warnings, the JCS instructed MacArthur to continue his advance north to destroy the DPRK armed forces as long as there was no threat of a major Chinese or Soviet intervention. These instructions were based upon a National Security Council decision made before the Inchon landing. The Secretary of State also disregarded these warnings, telling the press that Chinese intervention would be "sheer madness."
By the end of the month, the US Ambassador in Moscow reported that Soviet and Chinese contacts told both the British and Dutch Ambassadors that if foreign troops cross the 38th parallel, China would intervene. This specific warning was also repeated to various journalists, and on 29 September, the Associated Press in Moscow reported that both China and the Soviet Union would take a "grave view" of US forces crossing the 38th parallel. Finally, at the end of the month, in a major public policy address celebrating the first anniversary of the establishment of the People's Republic of China, Zhou En-lai branded the United States as China's worst enemy and stated that China will not allow a neighbor to be invaded.
Once again, these warnings were ignored, and US-UN forces continued to push the DRPK forces northward.[...]
Paul,
Thank you for your follow up response to a number of folks.
I do appreciate the references made in how our nuclear sub fleet has dwindled down in more then one way. The Bangor move is trully bad news. I was aware of that one. What I have not been aware of since I no longer follow things as you are, is the very sad fact of how many of our nuclear subs in all classes have been retired or at least are no longer patrolling the worlds seas. Bad news. Very bad news. I am aware of the capabilities afforded by using GPS, as an example. Let me say this. My response to you ininitally in saying "No one wins in pre-emptive nor follow up nuclear strikes:, and my follow up reponses to our member pesmerga, in essence where based on my INCOMPLETE knowledge of just how bad our aging nuclear deterrant has become. I simply do not follow things as once had.
One thing is quite clear in my head. And that is the fact that only those countries that are willing to spend the required R&D followed up with high levels of excellance in the fabrication and production levels of all type defensive/offensive weapontry, to equal or outclass rivals, has a chance of maintaining any level of soverienty and say in this world.
Having with been from 1966 through 1979 directly involved, lab development through in some cases final testing stages on the world's first Harpoon Cruise Missle (I worked on the onboard computer), F16 Fire Control Radar System (again the computer), the original Westinghouse ECM pods (was a beam me up scotty at the time), APG-120 analog FC. Radar system, and other defense projects, I do have a sense of the need for not only keeping equal but far exceeding any technology any potential enemy or otherwise power can produce.
So believe me I do not live in a rose glassed world. My comment should have perhaps been better worded. To indicate that killing hundreds of millions of peoples by first strikes or required follow up strikes by nuclear means is a hell of a way to have to go. But I truly am aware we must have the worlds best and powerful weapon capabilities in all forms, e.g. ground, air, sea, and associated monitorihng, and detection grids, ground, air, sea, and space. Our potential or outright enemies must always view it as simply a ridiculus proposition to even think about starting a war with us. In this I see your well thought out responses show, we truly are lacking. We know longer can as under JFK and Ronnie, make it clear we will have the means to remove the aggressor from existence should the need arise.
Now if we just had a senate and house that would support the need to fully re-arm in mass, then obviously any future POTUS would have the means to put us back on the right track. As you are fully aware, there are those in our DoD and military at large, it has always been the case, hey George S. Patton as you are aware had to fight harder against those that did not seek a fully trained modern at the time equiped mobile army both teeth and nail. The problems just have gotten worse over the years, for many well documented reasons.
At any rate, thanks for the effort to update some of us on just how precauious a position we have put ourselves into.
Without not even considering the air/ground/space issues, not having a dominant and new technological and number wise nuclear fleet to keep the status quo, this nations is at risk of continued blackmail, and intimidation. To damn many
people in congress are more worried about how many bucks can be spent to keep certain elements of our society and those from other nations, living on the same standard of living as those that work hard for their money. They are to be blamed partly for our current demise. In this I am certain. As usual one expects unless they write a carefully "cover all an angles book", within a single post to perhaps not convey adequately what angle they are coming from.
But again thanks for the bad news.