WAR CHINA THREATENS TO INVADE TAIWAN

jward

jward

passin' thru
US and Japan draw up joint military plan in case of Taiwan emergency – report


3 minutes


Japanese and US armed forces have drawn up a draft plan for a joint operation for a possible Taiwan emergency, Japan’s Kyodo news agency has reported, amid increased tensions between the island and China.
Under the plan, the US marine corps would set up temporary bases on the Nansei island chain stretching from Kyushu – one of the four main islands of Japan – to Taiwan at the initial stage of a Taiwan emergency and would deploy troops, Kyodo said on Thursday, citing unnamed Japanese government sources.
Japanese armed forces would provide logistical support in such areas as ammunition and fuel supplies, it said.
Japan, a former colonial ruler of Taiwan, and the US would likely reach an agreement to start formulating an official plan at a “2+2” meeting of foreign and defence ministers early next year, the news agency said.

Japanese defence ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own “sacred” territory and in the past two years has stepped up military and diplomatic pressure to assert its sovereignty claims, fuelling anger in Taipei and deep concern in Washington.
Taiwan’s government says it wants peace, but will defend itself if needed.
In October, Japan’s government signalled a more assertive position on China’s aggressive posture towards self-ruled Taiwan, suggesting it would consider options and prepare for “various scenarios”, while reaffirming close US ties.
Earlier this month, former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe said Japan and the US could not stand by if China attacked Taiwan.

US officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, have long said that given the tens of thousands of troops the US has in Japan and its proximity to Taiwan, Japan would likely have to play an important role in any Taiwan emergency.
Japan is host to major US military bases, including on the southern island of Okinawa, a short flight from Taiwan, which would be crucial for any US support during a Chinese attack.
The US, like most countries in the world, recognises China over Taiwan, in line with Beijing’s “one China” policy. But Washington is the island’s biggest arms supplier and ally and is obliged by law to help it defend itself.
www.theguardian.com

US and Japan draw up joint military plan in case of Taiwan emergency – report

US would set up bases from a Japanese island to Taiwan and deploy troops, with Japan providing logistical support, Kyodo reports
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com
 
MinnesotaSmith

MinnesotaSmith

Membership Revoked
The West needs to assist the Republic of China in evacuating their computer chip and other high-end facilities the Hades OUT of there, RTFN. The Imperial Museum needs to go, too.
 
jward

jward

passin' thru
In New Year's speech, Taiwan president warns China against 'military adventurism'
December 31, 20219:22 PM CST
Last Updated an hour ago

3 minutes


Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen speaks at a rank conferral ceremony for military officials from the Army, Navy and Air Force, at the defence ministry in Taipei, Taiwan December 28, 2021. REUTERS/Annabelle Chih
R
TAIPEI, Jan 1(Reuters) - Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen marked the new year with a message for China: military conflict is not the answer.
"We must remind the Beijing authorities to not misjudge the situation and to prevent the internal expansion of 'military adventurism'," Tsai said on Saturday in her New Year's speech broadcast live on Facebook.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own territory and has increased military and diplomatic pressure in the past two years to assert its sovereignty claims.

In Chinese President Xi Jinping's New Year address the day before, he said the complete unification of "the motherland" was an aspiration shared by people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait.
Taiwan says it is an independent country and has repeatedly vowed to defend its freedom and democracy.
"The military is definitely not an option for solving cross-strait disagreements. Military conflicts would impact economic stability," Tsai said. "Our two sides jointly shoulder the responsibility of maintaining regional peace and stability."
Taiwan's stance has always been "to not succumb when facing pressure and to not rashly advance when receiving support," Tsai said.

To ease tension in the region, both Taipei and Beijing must "work hard to take care of people's livelihoods and calm the hearts of the people" in order to find peaceful solutions to problems together, Tsai said.
Tsai also said Taiwan would continue to monitor the situation in Hong Kong, adding that interference in the recent legislative election and the arrests this week of senior staff at the pro-democracy media outlet Stand News "made people worry even more about human rights and freedom of speech in Hong Kong."
Steady governance is Taiwan's most important goal in 2022, Tsai said.
"We will hold fast to our sovereignty, uphold the values of freedom and democracy, defend territorial sovereignty and national security, and maintain peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region."
www.reuters.com

In New Year's speech, Taiwan president warns China against 'military adventurism'

Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen had a New Year message for China on Saturday: military conflict is not the answer, but Beijing responded with a stern warning that if Taiwan crossed any red line it would lead to "profound catastrophe".
www.reuters.com www.reuters.com
 
jward

jward

passin' thru
Technology has rendered moon phase pretty inconsequential, iirc; China will still have the olympics, and nato's still got meetings schedule in January, so ^if^ anything pops, it should be a while yet.
..barring accidental ignitions, real or manmade.
 
jward

jward

passin' thru
Stop counting warships. China's special-operations forces are Taiwan's real problem.
Lyle Goldstein, Defense Priorities

4 hours ago
The Liaoning, China's first aircraft carrier, departs Hong Kong

The Liaoning, China's first aircraft carrier, departs Hong Kong, July 11, 2017. Kin Cheung/AP
  • China's military expansion, especially of its naval fleet, has received worldwide attention.
  • As impressive as those ships are, China's leaders may not rely on them to recapture Taiwan.
  • Lyle Goldstein is director of Asia Engagement at Defense Priorities and a former research professor at the US Naval War College.


In December, two Chinese carrier battle groups went to sea simultaneously for the first time. They did so only weeks after the Chinese Navy's newest large helicopter carrier began its sea trials.

These are major milestones for the PLA Navy, which is clearly advancing quickly in all respects. Yet they may be a red herring when it comes to the "the most dangerous place on the planet," as the Economist accurately described the Taiwan situation last year.

Indeed, China does not require large and advanced warships to attack the island. This is quite easily grasped if one simply looks at a map and sees that the medium-sized island is less than 100 miles off of China's coast.

If the US were to try to invade Cuba, would it need the 3rd, 5th, and 7th fleets? Hardly. The US Army and Air Force most likely would be quite sufficient without support from the US Navy. The same is true for Taiwan, which is unfortunate enough to be a very close neighbor of a nationalistic, rising superpower.

No warships necessary

South China Sea between Xiamen in China and Kinmen in Taiwan

Less than 3 miles of the South China Sea separate the Chinese city of Xiamen and Taiwan's Kinmen islands, February 2, 2021. An Rong Xu/Getty Images

In the first phase of an attack, Taiwan would be pulverized by thousands of ballistic and cruise missiles (not even counting lethal rocket artillery), eliminating its air defenses, hitting runways, and knocking out key communications nodes.
After that, hundreds of PLA Air Force bombers and attack aircraft would have free reign over the island, with critical assistance from surveillance drones and loitering "kamikaze" munitions.

The main purpose of these strikes, aside from eliminating Taiwan's small navy and air force, would be to clear corridors over the island with massive firepower, paving the way for PLA soldiers to insert via parachute and helicopter.
Beijing has been massively upgrading its airborne forces so that all three major services are now making very regular parachute jumps. Exercises demonstrate that Chinese airborne forces, moreover, are undertaking more challenging jumps, including at night, in coastal areas, and even over the water.
Chinese sources confirm that the PLA could have about 450 transport aircraft poised to deliver these troops. China has also put its most advanced Y-20 transport aircraft at the service of its paratroopers.


Chinese PLA military paratroopers Y-8

Chinese PLA paratroopers jump from a Y-8 aircraft during a Pakistan-China military exercise in Jhelum, November 24, 2011. AAMIR QURESHI/AFP via Getty Images

Having studied major airborne operations like Normandy in great detail, the PLA understands well that these troops require additional firepower and mobility, for which special light tanks, jeeps, and anti-tank weapons have been developed.

The PLA's parachute troops will get crucial assistance from a parallel effort by an enormous fleet of transport and attack helicopters. Demonstrating the salient role of helicopters in the evolving PLA, and in a Taiwan scenario in particular, China has been simultaneously fielding two types of transport helicopters and two types of attack helicopters.
This crowded production schedule is supplemented with ample imports from Russia. A Russian expert on the PLA recently estimated the PLA force at 1,500 helicopters in a December 2021 analysis titled, "The Celestial Rotary-wing Empire.
Between parachute and heliborne forces, China could quite reasonably hope to put 50,000 soldiers on the island in the first wave and well over 100,000 in the first 24 hours.
It is worth noting that Chinese strategists are acutely aware that these first assault waves will suffer very high casualties, but they consider this a necessary cost to obtain victory.


Chinese air force special operations troops

Chinese Air Force special-operations troops during a drill, March 3, 2015. Xinhua/Huang Hui

Just as Chinese strategists are working to solve the firepower issue with airborne assault, they have been working assiduously on the supply problem. Beijing's heliborne and airborne forces will be resupplied by parachute-dropped pallets and by heavy drones developed specifically for this purpose.

Most Western defense analysts seem enamored of China's amphibious tank force, which is extolled almost daily in PLA news reports. Yet Beijing's strategists know very well that amphibious assault against dug-in defenders with slow and highly visible assault vehicles is risky.
So while armor may get some use, the main forces coming ashore, at least initially, will be infantry in small, light craft that can built cheaply. This approach is in line with cutting-edge thinking about amphibious warfare.

As two US strategists giving advice to the US Marine Corps not long ago wrote: "smaller ground units and capabilities dispersed over wide areas [can] … achieve outsized effects."

Chinese PLA military cadet amphibious vehicle

A cadet demonstrates an amphibious all-terrain vehicle at the PLA's Armored Forces Engineering Academy, July 22, 2014. GREG BAKER/AFP via Getty Images

Reflecting that emphasis on small size and greater dispersion, the PLA has in recent years taken great interest in operations with light craft.

These vessels have speed, stealth, and low cost, but perhaps their most notable virtue is their small size, allowing them to be carried and launched by almost any civilian vessel, including ships of China's enormous fishing fleet.

Such vessels will run the gamut from inflatable rafts with outboard engines to small landing craft to more high-performance vessels. At the latter end of the spectrum is a 16-meter "new type high speed vessel," specifically the Type 928D assault boat for ground forces, details of which were revealed in January 2020 by a Chinese shipbuilding magazine.

In such craft, which could easily be hidden in cavernous storage areas proximate to China's massive ports, Chinese assault teams could access the entire Taiwan coastline in four or five hours.

Normal force vs. extraordinary force
Chinese soldiers in Jordan

Chinese soldiers at the King Abdullah II Special Operations Training Center in Amman, May 3, 2016. Xinhua/Mohammad Abu Ghosh via Getty Images
The assault vectors outlined above do not depend heavily on warships, but they do rely upon a large force of highly trained assault troops, special forces in particular.
As elite formations in Western militaries increased in size and ability during the war on terror, Beijing also invested keenly in such capabilities.


There was a glimpse of China's intensity in developing these forces a few years ago, when a reporter for the Atlantic sized them up during an international counterterrorism competition. The PRC teams did not disappoint.
If one watches the Chinese military news regularly, it is apparent that these select soldiers are being prepared for stealthy insertion, night operations, sniper tactics, securing hard targets, urban combat, and mountain operations.

These troops would create mayhem in Taiwan's rear areas, closing roads and attacking headquarters, but they would also secure crucial objectives, including crucial high ground, airfields, and small ports.
When Chinese forces do come ashore on Taiwan's beaches, special-forces teams may well have already secured those landing areas.


The PLA fondness for special operations should not be very surprising. More than 2,000 years ago, the Chinese strategist Sun Tzu wrote: "use the normal force to engage; use the extraordinary force to win."

Taiwan China amphibious landing military exercise

A Taiwanese military exercise simulating an attempted amphibious landing by Chinese forces, May 30, 2019. Kyodo News Stills via Getty Images
American strategists, however, seem to prefer simply to count how many amphibious tanks could be put in the water, since the massive ships transporting those tanks could potentially be targeted by American torpedoes and missiles.

Crude models that seek a "technological silver bullet" to defeat a Chinese invasion fail to account for the fact that Taiwan is mostly composed of mountains and urban areas. In other words, this will be a good old infantry fight.
It should be noted that amphibious tanks have never been a decisive factor in beach assaults — not at Normandy, not at Inchon, and not in the Falklands. Rather, air power was decisive in those campaigns, and China has that in spades, supplemented by vast missile, drone, and long-range artillery forces.


An infantry fight can be deeply affected by airpower, of course, but soldier motivation will also play a decisive role. In that respect, China also seems to have a major advantage over Taiwan, which has been lackluster in its own defense.
American strategists would be wise to get real about this scenario with a better understanding of the local geography and developments in current Chinese military doctrine.
If, as this analysis suggests, favorable geography, combined with highly trained and motivated special forces — not to mention the obvious first-mover advantage — afford Beijing near-total mastery in a Taiwan scenario, these factors also mean Taiwan is the wrong place for Washington to draw a "red line" in the Asia-Pacific.

Lyle Goldstein is director of Asia Engagement at Defense Priorities. Formerly, he served as research professor at the US Naval War College for 20 years. In that post, he was awarded the Superior Civilian Service Medal for founding and leading the China Maritime Studies Institute.

Posted For Fair Use
www.businessinsider.com

Stop counting warships. China's special-operations forces are Taiwan's real problem.

As impressive as China's naval expansion has been, Chinese leaders may not rely on those ships to recapture Taiwan.
www.businessinsider.com www.businessinsider.com
 
jward

jward

passin' thru
Taiwan sends veterans to Washington for closer military exchanges

  • Army and navy veteran duo to set up office in Taipei’s de facto embassy and foster interactions between active and retired officers
  • ‘Retired’ status may help them work better with the influential Veterans of Foreign Wars of the US, lawmaker from Taiwan’s ruling party says
Lawrence Chung

Published: 9:00pm, 3 Jan, 2022
Updated: 9:00pm, 3 Jan, 2022

Taiwanese honour guards with the island’s flag at Liberty Square in Taipei. Photo: EPA-EFE

Taiwanese honour guards with the island’s flag at Liberty Square in Taipei. Photo: EPA-EFE

Taiwan is sending two senior retired servicemen to be stationed in Washington, in a boost for military exchanges with the US at a time of escalating cross-strait tensions.
Observers said the dispatch – the first ever from Taipei’s Veterans Affairs Council – was expected to pave the way for more frequent exchanges between US and Taiwanese military officials, both active and retired, and increased bilateral cooperation, despite protests from Beijing.
Beijing sees self-ruled Taiwan as a renegade province to be reunited by force if necessary, and has reacted angrily to warming Taiwan-US ties in recent years. Cross-strait relations, which turned frosty after Tsai Ing-wen was elected Taiwanese president, deteriorated further as the US declared strong support for the island and its defence against military threats from mainland China.

Don’t ‘play with fire’: Mainland China tells US for inviting Taiwan to democracy summit


01:16

Don’t ‘play with fire’: Mainland China tells US for inviting Taiwan to democracy summit


Don’t ‘play with fire’: Mainland China tells US for inviting Taiwan to democracy summit
According to the Veterans’ Affairs Council, retired army major general Ni Pang-chen and retired navy captain Cheng Kuo-feng had been scheduled to leave for their official posts in Washington on Monday afternoon.

“But due to a delay in paperwork, Cheng will first leave for the US in the afternoon and Ni will go shortly after,” a council spokesman said.

Ni will be in charge of the council’s operations in the US, while Cheng would be his deputy. Their office, with a locally hired assistant, is to be tentatively set up at the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office – the island’s de facto embassy in Washington.
Retired Taiwan army major general Ni Pang-chen speaks English and Spanish. Photo: CNA


Retired Taiwan army major general Ni Pang-chen speaks English and Spanish. Photo: CNA
Ni, who is fluent in both English and Spanish, had been stationed in Guatemala and Los Angeles previously. He has experience in intelligence research, while Cheng has also served at overseas posts before, council officials said.

Council chairman Feng Shih-kuan, a former defence minister, had told a legislative session in December that the two former servicemen would help foster more bilateral exchanges, and build official connections with the US Department of Veterans Affairs and the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the US, the oldest and largest such organisation in the country.

Feng disclosed then that Sandra Oudkirk, the de facto US ambassador to Taiwan, had visited the council in October and met Ni and Cheng, though he did not reveal what was discussed during the meeting.
President Tsai Ing-wen meets US diplomat Sandra Oudkirk in Taipei. Photo: Handout


President Tsai Ing-wen meets US diplomat Sandra Oudkirk in Taipei. Photo: Handout
Chao Tien-lin, a lawmaker from Tsai’s ruling Democratic Progressive Party and member of the legislature’s foreign affairs and defence committee, said the appointments were apparently consented to by the US.

“Through the Veterans of Foreign Wars, which is rather influential in the US military, the two might work better to promote US-Taiwan exchanges than our envoys in the US because of their ‘retired’ status,” he said.
Shu Hsiao-huang, a researcher at the Institute for National Defence and Security Research, a government think tank in Taipei, said the deepening of US-Taiwan relations had paved the way for more active military exchanges, and interaction between the council and the US Department of Veterans Affairs would give such exchanges a further boost.

In a report released on its website last week, the institute said Taiwan might be able to take part in the US-led Rim of the Pacific (Rimpac) military exercises in the summer as an observer member, if invited to do so.
Is the US set to change policy of ambiguity on Taiwan?

25 Dec 2021


US President Joe Biden has signed into law the 2022 National Defence Authorisation Act, which includes a non-binding proposal for Taiwan to be invited to take part in the multinational biennial drills this year. However, researcher Liu Ying-chieh said in the report it did not seem likely that Taiwan could send its forces, because of the US’ adherence to the one-China policy.

Under this policy, the US acknowledges Beijing’s stand as the sole representative of China but considers the island’s status as unresolved.
Hence, an invitation for Taiwan to take part in such drills would sharply provoke the mainland, Liu said.

“Sending observers to Rimpac would be a possible way to take part in the drills.”
www.scmp.com

Taiwan sends veterans to the US for closer military ties

Pair of veterans to set up office in Taipei’s de facto embassy and foster interactions between active and retired officers on either side.
www.scmp.com www.scmp.com
 
N

northern watch

TB Fanatic
jward said:
US and Japan draw up joint military plan in case of Taiwan emergency – report


3 minutes


Japanese and US armed forces have drawn up a draft plan for a joint operation for a possible Taiwan emergency, Japan’s Kyodo news agency has reported, amid increased tensions between the island and China.
Under the plan, the US marine corps would set up temporary bases on the Nansei island chain stretching from Kyushu – one of the four main islands of Japan – to Taiwan at the initial stage of a Taiwan emergency and would deploy troops, Kyodo said on Thursday, citing unnamed Japanese government sources.
Japanese armed forces would provide logistical support in such areas as ammunition and fuel supplies, it said.
Japan, a former colonial ruler of Taiwan, and the US would likely reach an agreement to start formulating an official plan at a “2+2” meeting of foreign and defence ministers early next year, the news agency said.

Japanese defence ministry officials were not immediately available for comment.
China claims democratically governed Taiwan as its own “sacred” territory and in the past two years has stepped up military and diplomatic pressure to assert its sovereignty claims, fuelling anger in Taipei and deep concern in Washington.
Taiwan’s government says it wants peace, but will defend itself if needed.
In October, Japan’s government signalled a more assertive position on China’s aggressive posture towards self-ruled Taiwan, suggesting it would consider options and prepare for “various scenarios”, while reaffirming close US ties.
Earlier this month, former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe said Japan and the US could not stand by if China attacked Taiwan.

US officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, have long said that given the tens of thousands of troops the US has in Japan and its proximity to Taiwan, Japan would likely have to play an important role in any Taiwan emergency.
Japan is host to major US military bases, including on the southern island of Okinawa, a short flight from Taiwan, which would be crucial for any US support during a Chinese attack.
The US, like most countries in the world, recognises China over Taiwan, in line with Beijing’s “one China” policy. But Washington is the island’s biggest arms supplier and ally and is obliged by law to help it defend itself.
www.theguardian.com

US and Japan draw up joint military plan in case of Taiwan emergency – report

US would set up bases from a Japanese island to Taiwan and deploy troops, with Japan providing logistical support, Kyodo reports
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com
Click to expand...
US and Japan draw up joint military plan in case of Taiwan emergency – report

Does the plan include a Russian invasion of the Ukraine at the same time as a Chinese invasion of Taiwan?
 
M

mecoastie

Veteran Member
OldArcher said:
Can you believe that ANYONE would be stupid enough to believe ANYTHING that the Biden Administration says, that would defend freedom?

OA
Click to expand...

They dont have an option. While Japan is in a much better place than the Ukraine its the same. Japan cant stop the Chinese without us. The Ukes cant stop the Russians without us. Taiwan, Australia etc. They all need us. None of them are going to start it but if the Russians and or Chinese move, the only hope of slowing them is the US. We also need them. They are all spending big bucks on US weapons. That keeps the MIC happy but it also keeps our production lines open and working. Putin is working a similar game. Belarus, China Syria India. All buying Russian weapons.
 
N

night driver

ESFP adrift in INTJ sea
Been a WHILE since I saw a water-borne "Elephant Walk"....

I SUSPECT that there is some pantie-waisted twisted knickers US ossifer involved in the launch sequence currently. Said dweeb won't know that things have changed until they drop half a dozen Chink planes on the beaches.

Dunno WHAT he gonna use for an alibi for not bein at his desk.
 
N

northern watch

TB Fanatic
China sends 39 warplanes toward Taiwan, largest in new year
China has flown 39 warplanes toward Taiwan in its largest such sortie of the new year, continuing a pattern that the island has answered by scrambling its own military jets in response
By HUIZHONG WU Associated Press
24 January 2022, 00:58

FILE - Main China pilots prepare to fly a J-16 fighter jet at a training base for China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) naval aviation force in Ningbo in eastern China's Zhejiang Province, Thursday, Jan. 14, 2021. China flew 39 warplanes, including

Image Icon
The Associated Press
FILE - Main China pilots prepare to fly a J-16 fighter jet at a training base for China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) naval aviation force in Ningbo in eastern China's Zhejiang Province, Thursday, Jan. 14, 2021. China flew 39 warplanes, including 24 J-16s and 10 J-10s, toward Taiwan, Sunday, Jan. 24, 2022, in its largest such sortie of the new year, continuing a pattern that the island has answered by scrambling its own jets in response. (Chinatopix via AP, File)

TAIPEI, Taiwan -- China flew 39 warplanes toward Taiwan in its largest such sortie of the new year, continuing a pattern that the island has answered by scrambling its own jets in response.

The formation Sunday night included 24 J-16 fighter jets and 10 J-10 jets, among other support aircraft and electronic warfare aircraft, according to Taiwan's defense ministry.

Taiwan's air force scrambled its own jets and tracked the People's Liberation Army planes on its air defense radar systems, the defense ministry said.

Chinese pilots have been flying towards Taiwan on a near-daily basis in the past year and a half, since Taiwan's government started publishing the data regularly. The largest sortie was 56 warplanes on a single day last October.

The activity has generally been in the air space southwest of Taiwan and falls into what Taiwan's military calls the air defense identification zone, or air space it monitors out of national security considerations.

Taiwan and China split during a civil war in 1949, but China claims the island as its own territory. As a result, Beijing opposes any action that would identify Taiwan as a sovereign state and has used diplomatic and military means to isolate and intimidate Taiwan.

Tensions have been high since Taiwanese citizens elected Tsai Ing-wen as president in 2016, to which Beijing responded by cutting off previously established communications with the island's government. Tsai's predecessor was friendly to China and had endorsed Beijing's claim that the two are part of a single Chinese nation.

China sends 39 warplanes toward Taiwan, largest in new year - ABC News (go.com)
 
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