Chinese aircraft carrier Liaoning
David Tweed and Adrian Leung, Bloomberg: China Is Making a Bold Military Power Play
As lawmakers meet this week to cement Xi Jinping’s power at home, China’s president is also looking to boost his country’s military might abroad. He’s overhauled China’s military to challenge U.S. supremacy in the Indo-Pacific, most visibly with a plan to put half-a-dozen aircraft carriers in the world’s oceans. Still, Xi has a problem: He needs bases around the world to refuel and repair his global fleet. So far, China only has one overseas military base, compared with dozens for the U.S., which also has hundreds of smaller installations.
In recent years China has stepped up efforts to challenge the U.S.’s military presence in the South China Sea, developing missiles to deter American warships and reclaiming land to build bases on the disputed Spratly Islands. It also started sending submarines and frigates into the Indian Ocean, opened its first overseas base in Djibouti and invested in ports around the region that could one day be used for military purposes. That has set off alarm bells among some countries in the region, leading to closer security cooperation between the U.S., Australia, India and Japan. But China says there’s nothing to worry about. It says the base is aimed at deterring piracy in a key Middle East shipping lane for oil tankers, while the ports are part of Xi’s Belt-and-Road infrastructure push that spans three continents. China says it wants prosperity for all–not global hegemony.
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WNU Editor: From building bases in the South China Sea .... to deploying military assets around the Indian ocean. You have to wonder what region will the Chinese focus next.
3 comments:
The US has military bases around the world. These bases come at enormous costs along with little to no corresponding benefit to the US. It'd be far better to have a military/defense policy similar to that of countries like Australia, Canada, or New Zealand just to name three examples. If this really is the goal that China wants to pursue, they will need a different way of going about it than America has.
If no benenfit, why are they there? and if not smart to be there why emulate what much smaller nations do...why would NZ do anything beyond what they do? they count on US support. Should we withdraw such support world wide to emulate those nations you mention, and, if so, china would be wise then to do what we had been doing...We are either super power or we are not. Choose and if not, who will take our place?
We are not a super power. The current POTUS has been wise to refrain from saying such nonsense. At least to the best of my knowledge he has been.
"If no benefit, why are they there?" I suspect they are there to serve the interests of certain special interests, perhaps the military industrial complex or the foreigners who lobby the US government. they'd certainly be happy to continue these ridiculous arrangements. We Americans make great cannon fodder for them.
"...why would NZ do anything beyond what they do?" They seem to be doing exactly what they should do. This is why I mentioned them as an example worthy of emulation where and when possible.
"...they count on US support." As George Washington said to paraphrase, why quit our own to stand on foreign lands. While his context was Europe, this could apply to pretty much any of these ridiculous alliances today.
"...who will take our place?" China might. If so, they will need to execute this better than we have. Otherwise the cost will outweigh any benefit which to America has been minimal to non existent for quite awhile. If the redeployment of US forces is handled correctly, then the other nations, South Korea for example, would move their forces in as we move out and they would be ready to properly defend and advance the legitimate interests of their countries. Such a situation would likely actually strengthen our alliances.
We are probably headed to a "multi-polar" world as some have called it. In fact, we are probably already there. While we will NOT agree with major powers like Russia and China on everything nor will cooperation always be possible, treat them as equals which they are, respect them, and good outcomes are possible.
There have been a number of suggestions on how we could wind down the current situation in an orderly fashion. The key is an orderly fashion because it will be wound down one way or the other as we can no longer afford it and have essentially bankrupted ourselves. A fair debate needs to be had on this. I would think a reasonable goal would be to eliminate 99.50% of US foreign deployments within a five year timeframe. Unfortunately the over the top hysteria of the anti-war "left" has made this debate all but impossible.
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