About knowing oneself
The knower of man is wise.
The self-knower is enlightened.
The conqueror is powerful.
The self-control is mighty.
He who knows how to be satisfied is rich.
He who acts vigorously has will.
He who does not lose his place, stands.
He who dies, but does not perish, lives forever.
Lao Tzu – Tao Te Ching
Coastal Beach Art, Abstract Beach Decor Art, Large Seaside Canvas
Xiamen City, Fujian Province, China
The free world must ask itself to what extent it wants to depend on a China dominated by a party with dictatorial policies and a total lack of democracy
A Taiwanese Air Force F16V fighter jet takes part in night drill from the Hualien Airbase in Taiwan’s southeastern Hualien county on Wednesday, Aug. 17, 2022. Experts say a lot can be gleaned from what China has done, and not done, in the large-scale military exercises it held in response to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, followed by Taiwan’s own drills and Beijing announcing more maneuvers planned. (AP Photo/Johnson Lai, File)
BANGKOK (AP) — China’s response to U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan was anything but subtle — dispatching warships and military aircraft to all sides of the self-governing island democracy, and firing ballistic missiles into the waters nearby.
The dust has still not settled, with Taiwan this week conducting drills of its own and Beijing announcing it has more maneuvers planned, but experts say a lot can already be gleaned from what China has done, and has not done, so far. China will also be drawing lessons on its own military capabilities from the exercises, which more closely resembled what an actual strike on the island claimed by Beijing as its own territory would look like, and from the American and Taiwanese response.
During the nearly weeklong maneuvers that followed Pelosi’s early August visit, China sailed ships and flew aircraft regularly across the median line in the Taiwan Strait, claiming the de facto boundary did not exist, fired missiles over Taiwan itself, and challenged established norms by firing missiles into Japan’s exclusive economic zone.
ADVERTISEMENT
“I think we are in for a risky period of testing boundaries and finding out who can achieve escalatory dominance across the diplomatic, military and economic domains,” said David Chen, an analyst with CENTRA Technology, a U.S.-based consulting firm.
Malaysia’s Mahathir says US seeking to provoke war in TaiwanCambodia says it’s helping foreigners scammed by traffickersUS to hold trade talks with Taiwan, island drills militaryChina, Japan officials meet amid Taiwan tensions
Pelosi was the highest-level member of the U.S. government to visit Taiwan in 25 years, and her visit came at a particularly sensitive time, as Chinese President Xi Jinping prepares to seek a third five-year term as leader of the ruling Communist Party later this year.
Under Xi, China has been increasingly forceful in declaring that Taiwan must be brought under its control — by force if necessary — and U.S. military officials have said that Beijing may seek a military solution within the next few years.
Tensions were already high, with China conducting regular military flights near Taiwan and the U.S. routinely sailing warships through the Taiwan Strait to emphasize they are international waters.
China accuses the U.S. of encouraging the island’s independence through the sale of weapons and engagement between U.S. politicians and the island’s government.
ADVERTISEMENT
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying called Pelosi’s visit a “serious provocation” and accused Washington of breaking the status quo and “interfering in China’s internal affairs.”
“China is not the old China of 120 years ago, and we are not Iraq, Syria or Afghanistan — we will not allow any foreign force to bully, suppress or enslave us,” she told reporters in Beijing. “Whoever wants to do so will be on a collision course with the Great Wall of steel forged by the 1.4 billion Chinese people.”
The U.S. continues to insist it has not deviated from its “one-China” policy, recognizing the government in Beijing while allowing for informal relations and defense ties with Taipei.
China held off on its maneuvers until Pelosi had left Taiwan, and turned back its forces before they approached Taiwan’s coast or territorial airspace, which showed a “modicum of restraint,” Chen said. But, he noted, another congressional visit following Pelosi’s triggered the announcement of more exercises.
ADVERTISEMENT
“We are likely entering a period of regular military demonstrations in and around China’s maritime domain,” he said.
“The Chinese Communist Party is also quite capable in creating cross-domain responses, as has been seen in the cyber realm. Beyond that, we could see escalatory moves in space, in the South China Sea, Africa, the Indian Ocean, or the South Pacific.”
Taiwanese Foreign Minister Joseph Wu said the scale and coordination of the exercises suggested China was looking past Taiwan toward establishing dominance in the western Pacific. That would include controlling the East and South China Seas via the Taiwan Strait, and having the capability to impose a blockade to prevent the U.S. and its allies from coming to the aid of Taiwan in the event of an attack.
Short of an armed conflict, a blockade of the Taiwan Strait — a significant thoroughfare for global trade — could have major implications for international supply chains at a time when the world is already facing disruptions.
ADVERTISEMENT
In particular, Taiwan is a crucial provider of computer chips for the global economy.
Though ostensibly a reaction to Pelosi’s visit, it is clear China’s exercises had been long planned, said Mareike Ohlberg, a senior fellow in the Asia Program of the German Marshall Fund think tank.
“I do think they were looking for an opportunity to escalate,” she said. “This is not something you prep after the announcement (of the visit) and then pull off that quickly and that easily.”
The U.S. held back throughout the maneuvers, keeping an aircraft carrier group and two amphibious assault ships at sail in the region, but not close to the island. Taiwan avoided any active countermeasures.
Kurt Campbell, the Biden administration’s coordinator for Indo-Pacific affairs, said this week that the U.S. was taking a “calm and resolute” long-view approach that would include continued transits of the Taiwan Strait, supporting Taiwan’s self-defense capabilities, and otherwise deepening ties with the island.
ADVERTISEMENT
To that end, the U.S. announced Thursday that it was opening talks with Taiwan on a wide-ranging trade agreement.
Campbell said Washington sees China’s actions as “part of an intensified pressure campaign against Taiwan, which has not ended.”
“We expect it to continue to unfold in the coming weeks and months,” he said.
The U.S. Department of Defense has acknowledged China’s increasingly capable military, saying it has become a true rival and has already surpassed the American military in some areas, including shipbuilding, and now has the world’s largest navy.
The reserved American response to the recent exercises seemed calculated to avoid any accidental confrontation that could have escalated the situation, but could also feed China’s confidence, Ohlberg said.
“The base of China’s thinking is that the U.S. is in decline and that China is on the rise, and I guess the response would have been seen in Beijing as confirming that thinking,” she said.
The U.S. and China came perhaps the closest to blows in 1996, when China, irked by what it saw as increasing American support for Taiwan, fired missiles into the waters some 30 kilometers (20 miles) from Taiwan’s coast ahead of Taiwan’s first popular presidential election.
The U.S. responded with its own show of force, sending two aircraft carrier groups to the region. At the time, China had no aircraft carriers and little means to threaten the American ships, and it backed down.
China subsequently embarked on a massive modernization of its military and the recent exercises demonstrate a “quantum leap” of improvement from 1996, showing a joint command and control coordination not seen before, Chen said.
Before being confident enough to launch an actual invasion of Taiwan, however, the Chinese military still needs to do more to assure the country’s political leadership it would be successful, he said.
“These latest exercises are probably part of proving that capability, but more needs to be hammered out before they could be confident in conducting a full-scale Taiwan amphibious invasion,” he said. “They’ve only demonstrated the maritime blockade and air control parts of that campaign, without opposition.”
Following the visit, China released an updated “white paper” on Taiwan outlining how it envisioned an eventual annexation of the island would look.
It said it would follow the “one country, two systems” format applied in Hong Kong, which critics say has been undermined by a sweeping national security law that asserts Beijing’s control over speech and political participation. The concept has been thoroughly rejected in Taiwanese public opinion polls in which respondents have overwhelmingly favored their current de facto independence.
Tellingly, the new white paper discarded a pledge in its previous iteration not to send troops or government officials to an annexed Taiwan.
China has refused all contact with Taiwan’s government since shortly after the 2016 election of President Tsai Ing-wen of the pro-independence Democratic Progressive Party. Tsai was overwhelmingly reelected in 2020.
China’s bellicose response to Pelosi’s visit may have the unintended effect of strengthening the DPP in midterm elections later this year, said Huang Kwei-bo, vice dean of the College of International Affairs at Taiwan’s National Chengchi University.
Ideally, it would be in Taiwan’s best interest if both sides backed off and found “reasoned ways” to settle differences, he said.
“There’s an old saying that when two big elephants fight, the ant and the grass suffer,” he said.
___
AP journalist Johnson Lai in Taipei, Taiwan, contributed to this story.
https://apnews.com/article/taiwan-china-beijing-congress-8857910a1e44cefa70bc4dfd184ef880
if China starts something against Taiwan, even if the Russians against Ukraine, heavy sanctions will follow, EU and USA can do without China, the other way around it becomes a problem.
China begins military exercises around Taiwan
China has begun military exercises around Taiwan that the country had announced, Chinese state television reported. The exercises are a response to the visit of top American politician Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, which Beijing was an eyesore. The Chinese foreign minister called her visit irresponsible and highly irrational.
According to the state broadcaster, shots are fired from the sea and in the air around Taiwan. “Six large areas around the island have been selected for this combat exercise,” reports the broadcaster. Other ships and aircraft are not allowed to enter those areas during exercises.
It was previously expected that several warplanes and warships would fire live ammunition a few kilometers off the Taiwanese coast. According to Taiwan’s Ministry of Defense, China has already flown drones over Taiwan last night. When the island responded with flares, the drones disappeared again.
In response to China’s controversial military exercises, Taiwan’s defense ministry said the country was “preparing for war, without seeking war”.
Visit to Taiwan
Nancy Pelosi, the Speaker of the US House of Representatives and second in line after the vice president, visited Taiwan on Tuesday and yesterday as part of an Asia trip. Until shortly before her visit, it was unclear whether she would actually visit the East Asian country, because the relationship between the US and Taiwan, which China considers a renegade province, is sensitive. China put a lot of pressure on in advance to skip Taiwan, including by threatening a military response.
Nevertheless, Pelosi went to Taiwan, where she spoke yesterday with President Tsai Ing-wen, among others. The US politician stressed that she had come to show that the US stands behind Taiwan and that the country’s independence is one of the spearheads of US foreign policy. Incidentally, her visit was also sensitive in the US itself: President Biden, among others, had expressed his doubts about it beforehand, because the relationship between the US and China is very tense.
NOS news
Pelosi stresses: US solidarity with Taiwan is more important than ever
The United States continues to support Taiwan despite increasing pressure from China. The American top politician Nancy Pelosi made this clear during her visit to the president and parliament of the East Asian country. According to Pelosi, it is now “more important than ever” that Americans show solidarity with Taiwan, although the US continues to support the so-called One China policy.
Under that policy, Taiwan is officially part of China. Beijing considers the self-governing island a renegade province. Pelosi’s visit was therefore very sensitive in Beijing. China previously threatened, among other things, with military actions around Taiwan.
Democracy in Taiwan
Pelosi made it clear in an opinion piece yesterday that she would visit Taiwan because the independence of that country is an important spearhead of American foreign policy. In the Washington Post article, she wrote that Taiwan’s democracy is under threat from China and that the US should support the country in that regard.
During her visit, Pelosi reiterated that she came to Taiwan with “an unequivocal message: America stands behind Taiwan.” According to her, the world is currently faced with a choice between democracy and autocracy. “The American determination to preserve democracy, here in Taiwan and around the world, remains rock solid.” Taiwan must remain a free and safe country, she emphasized.
View images of the visit here:
0:55Top politician Pelosi speaks with parliament and president Taiwan
Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen thanked Pelosi for her continued support for her country. “One of Taiwan’s most devoted friends,” she described to her American visitor. “I admire the way Nancy Pelosi stands up for freedom, democracy and human rights, and the support for Taiwan on the international stage.”
Speaking about China’s troop build-up around the island, the president said: “We will firmly maintain our country’s sovereignty and defend our democracy.”
Economic consequences
Pelosi said the US supports the current status quo and does not want Taiwan’s status changed through military intervention. Speaking about the economic impact her visit will have on the East Asian country, she said the recently passed US chip law will open the door for greater economic cooperation.
Following Pelosi’s visit, China announced it would suspend imports of citrus fruits and fish from Taiwan from today. The export of sand to Taiwan has also been stopped.
Chip law
The US Senate passed a bill in late July to subsidize the chip industry by $50 billion, in hopes of encouraging companies to compete with China. In addition, the law should address a persistent shortage of chips. Taiwan is a major chip producer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing is the world’s largest chip producer.
According to Pelosi, Taiwan is one of the freest societies in the world. The Speaker of the House of Representatives further congratulated Taiwan on the way the country has dealt with corona.
human rights
Earlier today, Pelosi paid a visit to the Taiwanese parliament. There, she said she wants to expand “parliamentary exchanges” with the country.
Pelosi also spoke with Tsai Chi-chang, the deputy speaker of the parliament. “A beacon in the protection of human rights,” he called Pelosi. He also referred to Pelosi’s protest in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1991, two years after the violently dispersed student protests. “You gave a voice to the people who gave their lives for democracy.”
Targeted military action
The “targeted military actions” announced by the Chinese Ministry of Defense yesterday consist of exercises at sea and in the air, according to China. According to the Chinese authorities, they kicked off yesterday and will initially last until Sunday.
Rockets will also be fired, Beijing said. The US ambassador to the Chinese capital has been summoned to the State Department.
before Australian PM Kevin Rudd ( who speaks f;owendly Chinese) says that in 10 years China is militarily and economically super power no 1 , matter of time China will dominate the whole region
The J-16 is an advanced fighter jet in China’s air force
Taiwan’s Ministry of National Defence says that 21 Chinese aircraft entered Taiwan’s Air Defence Identification Zone (ADIZ) on Tuesday.
Aircraft involved in the incursion include 10 Shenyang J-16s, one of China’s advanced fighter jets.
It’s not uncommon for China to send aircraft into Taiwan’s ADIZ.
On Monday, four aircraft entered the zone.
An air defence identification zone is an area outside of a country’s territory and national airspace but where foreign aircraft are still identified and monitored. It is self-declared and technically remains international airspace.
BBC
#KevinRudd #Taiwan
in 10 years China will be ecomical and militairy super power no 1 says Kevin Rudd
AnnoZ Webb blog 