Posted on 07/15/2002 3:24:20 PM PDT by sam_paine
(in Breaking News as it was just reported on FNC...)
I don't think the Chinese have thought this through thoroughly.
Bump!
You convieniently left this quote out of the title.
On the contrary. Their efforts are careful, consistent, patient, inexpensive, and effective. You should note the breadth and depth of their efforts in Latin America, from the Panama Canal through Chavez in Venezuela to the Bahamas. Their alliances with Mexico are longstanding while Mexican contact with Taiwan is nil. Their ability to supply and augment military transport to our Southeast is increasing rapidly. It is clear that they intend to use strife both internally and all across our southern perimeter to prevent us from responding to their agressions across the Pacific. You will note growing distaste in Mexico for US policy in the Middle East and their willingness to abet trans-shipment of Arab terrorists into this country.
Are you suggesting a Taiwan-China conflict where Mexico and the "Reconquistas" would be allied with China and we would be fighting for the "1848 borders."
Seems far fetched, but stranger things happen.
Think "Pearl Harbor." The Japanese thought that that surprise attack would take out essentially all our capability to counter their thrust south into the Philippines, Malaya, and Indonesia, and force us to negotiate a peace that would concede Japan hegemony over Asia and the Western Pacific. Their "magic bullet" strategy didn't ultimately work, but it did work long enough to cost us considerable lives and treasure. Let's not let it happen again, no matter how much profit Wal-Mart and other US companies make by business dealings with China.
First of all assymetrical warfare (AW from now on) has been proven to be a viable mode of war when you need to negate or threaten superior military assets. It worked perfectly in Afghanistan during the 1980s when the CIA helped Usama bin Laden and his fellow mujahadeens (then they were called 'Freedom fighters') fend off Soviet attacks. There they used stinger (and in smaller measures redeye) handhel SAMs to neutralize Soviet helicopter gunships and fighter-bombers. In Vietnam too the Soviets gave 'aid' to the Vietcong by providing sophisticated (for then) SAM systems that wrought havoc on our WildWeasels and other US fighters.
Yet compared to what China is developing today that type of AW was very rudimentary!
There are reports that China has been 'acquring' sophisticated Western and Russian military tech (when i say acquired i mean through direct purchase, indirect purchase, and theft). The following are several examples.
First thing first they have SunBurn missiles! The sunburn is a supersonic missile developed by Russia for one purpose and one purpose only .....destroying American aircraft carriers! They are quite fast, extremely maneuvrable, and able to use a 'ripple effect' where a line of missiles attack at different flight paths, different angles and different speeds, all in a bid to beat the anti-missile defenses of the carrier. China has them.
China also has the J-10 fighter jet, which it developed thanks to the US and Israel! How? The US and Israel were working ona fighter concept called the Lavi which got cancelled in 1987, but somehow some Israeli general decided it was prudent (perhaps financially) to send the prototype details to China. Thus the J-10 was developed.
China also has the J-11 ....which in Russia is known as the Sukhoi-27 Flanker. This is a very advanced jet fighter, ranked better or equal to any western jet (apart from the upcomign F-22 Raptor and possibly the Eurofighter). This Russian jet's specifics were bought by China, and they can now make it indigenously as the J-11. Luckily most Chinese pilots do not seem to be very good pilots and thus have been crashing this very capable jet quite often (LOL) but should they learn how to use it as the Russians do let me just say any American pilot in a F-18 Hornet/SuperHornet will find himself in dire straits!
Plus they got have some Israeli made Python-3 air to air missiles, which are quite advanced (the Python-4 is the best in the world) as well as the Russian R-73 (which by the way is ranked as second best in the ASRAAM category inthe world). Nothing we have can match these missiles that can even be fired laterally from the fighter jet. Some say the also have the R-77 (an extremely advanced AMRAAM) but i personally do not believe the Russians would have sold them such a missile.
China has also been trying to acquire the Shvkal 2 Hypercavitating Rocket torpedo, which travels underwater in an 'envelop' of gases at speeds 4-5 times faster than anything we have. Some say china may have obtained either one of the prototypes of the former Shvkal-1, or working plans of the Shvkal-2.
Then there is the J-12 fighter project that is due for completion a decade from now. The J-12 is a stealth program that utilizes Russian stealth tech (from the Russian stealth prototypes Mig-Mapo 1.42 and the other Russian stealth S-37 Berkerut ...not to be confused with the Su-37 'terminator' which is not stealth). The J-12 is said to be in the same league with the F-22 Raptor and is meant to match it in performance and abilities (although the J-12 will have more gorund attack capabilities).
China has also invested in both the Czech 'Tamara' anti-stealth radar (a relatively rudimentary passive radar suite that can detect stealth aircraft) as well as much more advanced Russian anit-stealth detection devices.
Anyway the purpose of AW for China is not to make them win any wars with the US! Nope, that would never happen because the US is just too strong for China to stop directly. What AW is for is to cause sufficient casualties on the American side to cause the American population back home to reconsider the fight and call back the soldiers. After all China is banking that Americans back here will not let there people die in the protection of Taiwan. Imagine what the populace would do if two aircraft carriers were sunk with all hands on board. There would be many calling for the immediate destruction of China, even using nukes .....but many more would start questioning what American soldiers are doing defending Taiwan and a Vietnam situation would develop where they are calling for immediate withdrawal.
That is why AW by the Chinese should be looked at carefully.
Each knows he cannot defeat us alone and yet appears fully committed to defanging us somehow, someway, sometime -- but soon. That implies they'll necessarily come around to a secret mega-alliance. And it may already be forming. The EU has has come right out and stated as much: they are determined to dethrone us as the leading economic power in the world. China is working like crazy to build up its military. Russia is unhappy with us. And the unity of muslim opinion amongst countries that normally have little use for one another is another indicator.
I just hope it's only the background static in my tinfoil hat that's causing me to interpret much of the rest of the world's convergence of opinion about us and their increasing hatred for us as a sure prelude to a coordinated surprise attack by the whole lot of them. But I fear it isn't. And that's the real assassin's mace we should be worrying about, imo -- not a blow from one country like a China, but a simultaneous blow from many.
So it makes no sense to me for us to be disposing of our "surplus" nukes at this time. Indeed, this is the worst possible time to do such a thing . . . Just my opinion.
Many have underestimated the americans in the past.
At least since World War I (remember the "Zimmermann telegram"?), the enemies of the United States have tried to gain Mexico's cooperation in a joint strategy against the United States. The incentive offered has always been the "restoration" of lands in the American Southwest that many, if not most, Mexicans still consider legitimately part of Mexico. The Chinese are very much aware of this, especially the continuing historical enmity between the US and Mexico over the 1846-48 war. Let's not kid ourselves: our border with Mexico is now, and will increasingly be in the future, a source of threats to our national security, aided and abetted by deep rooted Mexican popular hostility towards the US, and China has exploited and will increasingly exploit our vulnerability on our southern border. Depend on it.
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