A show of force and intent
On April 23, China unveiled its new nuclear submarines, marking the highlight of the Chinese Navy’s 60th anniversary. The state news agency, Xinhua, quoted a senior Chinese naval officer’s statement that the display aimed to promote understanding about China’s military development.
Meanwhile, Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤) called on the Navy to enhance its capabilities to carry out missions in the new century.
These missions arguably range from protecting China’s interests in maritime trade and deterring Taiwanese independence to potentially challenging the US’ maritime position in Asia.
The latter concern is referred to specifically in the Pentagon’s report to Congress on the intentions of the Chinese military: developing a capability that can disrupt the traditional advantages of the US military.
Early last month, five Chinese ships harassed the US Navy vessel Impeccable in international waters, though the Chinese claimed that the ship was in its territory. Michael Auslin, a scholar with the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, labeled this activity as part of “an ongoing Chinese campaign to pressure the US Navy.”
The modernization of the PLA navy is critical for China in the event of military conflict in the Taiwan Strait and in expanding its influence beyond the Asia-Pacific region. Naval power is a prerequisite in operating missions in distant waters.
As such, the Navy is keen on acquiring an aircraft carrier, to be purchased overseas or developed domestically, for symbolic and practical purposes.
Through military parades and displaying new submarines, China is demonstrating its new maritime status — one that has greater operational confidence and capability.
This event marks the beginning of a new phase of military buildup.
A New York Times article, citing an official Chinese news outlet, reported that Beijing was aiming to increase its naval presence in the South China Sea by sending six more patrol vessels to the region over the next three to five years.
Undeniably, each nation has the inherent right to develop a strong naval presence in securing national interests. However, the current status of dominant power in the South and East China Seas has not satisfied China’s appetite for influence beyond these areas, as exemplified in its involvement in the international effort to combat piracy, particularly off Somalia.
In the name of curbing piracy in distant waters, the Chinese Navy is conspicuously testing its naval effectiveness and making its presence felt.
THOMAS CHOU
Seattle, Washington
As it has striven toward superiority in most measures of the Asian military balance, China is now ready to challenge the undersea balance of power, long dominated by the United States, a decisive advantage crucial to its ability to deter blockade and invasion of Taiwan by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). America expended enormous treasure to develop the technology, logistics, training, and personnel to emerge victorious in the Cold War undersea struggle against the former Soviet Union, and to remain superior today; the US is not used to considering the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN)
The annual summit of East Asia and other events around the ASEAN summit in October and November every year have become the most important gathering of leaders in the Indo-Pacific region. This year, as Laos is the chair of ASEAN, it was privileged to host all of the ministerial and summit meetings associated with ASEAN. Besides the main summit, this included the high-profile East Asia Summit, ASEAN summits with its dialogue partners and the ASEAN Plus Three Summit with China, Japan and South Korea. The events and what happens around them have changed over the past 15 years from a US-supported, ASEAN-led
President William Lai’s (賴清德) first Double Ten National Day address had two strategic goals. For domestic affairs, the speech aimed to foster consensus on national identity, strengthen the country and unite the Taiwanese against a Chinese invasion. In terms of cross-strait relations, the speech aimed to mitigate tensions in the Taiwan Strait and promote the coexistence and prosperity of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in China and the Republic of China (ROC). Lai is taking a different stance from previous Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) administrations on domestic political issues. During his speech, he said: “The PRC could not be the
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army is pressuring Taiwan using high intensity tactics to tire out Taiwanese forces and force them into making mistakes, The Economist cited Navy Commander Admiral Tang Hua (唐華) as saying in an interview published on Thursday last week. China is “using an ‘anaconda strategy’ to squeeze the island,” he said, adding that it is “slowly, but surely” increasing its presence around the nation. “They are ready to blockade Taiwan at any time they want,” Tang said. It is welcome to see a high-level official give an interview to international media on this matter. Although Taiwan is one
RSS