Saturday, April 20, 2019

U.S. Coastguard Faces The Chinese Navy In Asia

Captain John Driscoll next to the US Coast Guard vessel Bertholf during a port stop in Hong Kong this month. SCMP / K. Y. Cheng

SCMP/Washington Post: ‘Oversubscribed’ US Navy leans more on coastguard to help counter China

* As the Defence Department shifts its focus to competing with Russia and China, the coastguard ‘brings some authorities below the threshold of war’
* ‘Realities in the South China Sea’ and the loss of two Navy destroyers in 2017 are helping to drive the shift

As a US coastguard cutter sailed through the East China Sea last month, Chinese vessels shadowed it on the high seas, service officials said. It was a reminder to the Americans of where they were: in a strategic area a couple hundred miles from China’s shores.

The situation underscored the evolving US response to the rise of China and the coastguard’s role operating missions typically closer to home. The coastguard is increasingly orienting itself toward China, senior officials said, by deploying new cutters, repositioning older ones and dispatching service members to countries such as Vietnam and Sri Lanka to help train those nations’ coastguards.

Admiral Karl Schultz, the coastguard commandant, said that as the Defence Department shifts its focus to competing with Russia and China, the Navy is “oversubscribed”.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: One U.S. coastguard cutter in Asia is not going to intimidate China.

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

The US Navy must be significantly depleted if the US Coast Guard is being used to reinforce a US presence in the Asian theater. This is quite worrisome.

Jeffsmith said...

What in the world is the coast guard doing in Asia anyway. That's not near any coast that I recall.🤔🤔🤔

Mike Feldhake said...

Anon 11:22, my daughter serves on a sister ship like the ones that got damaged. Her ship is back in Drydock again and I tease her my tax dollars are not keeping me safe. Deployments cost money and causes more drydock time, so it's most likely a peace time effect, war time; The US would have a large show of force. The Coast Guard provides different functions and helps train our partners in how to operate in the shallows.

Roger Smith said...


Some members of China feel threatened by a single coast guard vessel in the area.

Instead of a growing military the country needs a growing mental health section. Or perhaps better drama classes in school.

Anonymous said...

OK Mike