"China Warns of ‘Inevitable’ War with US Over South China Sea" Topic

"After Chinese state media warned that war with the United States may be "inevitable," Beijing has published a policy paper detailing how the military will shift its focus from land and coastlines to the open seas. China's State Council released a white paper today that criticizes "external countries…busy meddling in South China Sea affairs" and sets out an "active defense" military strategy for the country.

The paper comes a day after an editorial (link in Chinese) in the state-run Chinese tabloid Global Times said conflict between China and the US will be unavoidable if the Washington doesn't lay off Beijing for building islands and military facilities in disputed parts of the South China Sea.

"We do not want a military conflict with the United States, but if it were to come we have to accept it," the paper said. (Editorials in state-run papers are not official representations of Beijing's position, but often reflect government sentiment.)…"
Full article here
link

Amicalement
Armand

From wiki: 'The Global Times' differentiates itself from other Chinese newspapers in part through its more populist approach to journalism, coupled with a tendency to court controversy.

With the current budget issues and cuts to the Navy, it would make sense for China to do something soon. China has the numbers for ships but who knows about technology. If they lack the technology it will be like fighting tanks with black powder.

War? Nah. Both the US & China are too dependent on each other. The US needs all those cheap China produced items from A-Z (you know, the stuff we used to manufacture ourselves) and China needs the money to pay for all those nifty weapons.

And to prop up its economy that has some very deep systemic problems.

And one of the easiest ways to take the public view from economic problems is to fight a war or threaten to fight a war. Applies to all countries.

Agree with you Phil!.

Amicalement
Armand

Even with the inextricable nature of the economies, a limited skirmish is still possible if China decides to test our commitments. But I just don't see a major war with large numbers of casualties because the stakes are simply too high.

That's what they said before WWI…

So if that is the case I say we nuke them first.

Hahaha ! ..I'd doubt US would open this engagement with a nuclear strike …too many US (and world-wide) businesses would have empty shelves for too long, and the west has developed an insatiable appetite for cheap clothes, shoes, electronics and meaningless plastic crap.

If "War is politics by other means" then China (and the Chinese political and media mouthpieces (both for domestic and international consumption) have ALREADY begun this political trajectory …and have backed themselves into a corner. One of the problems of a party dictatorship as we see in China is that after a while they start to believe their own BS. I bet China's politico-military elite honestly believes they can win a war with the USA…a symptom of believing their own self-congratulatory crap for too long. This is likely the most dangerous factor at play here. ie: China is incapable of thinking with the objective logic that it should be using about now.

We are (and have been for a while) ALREADY witnessing the "political war" from which China says there is NO negotiation. China has already invested a lot more in this than anyone else has (?can), and are "digging in".

"No Negotiation"???

…. so what are the other options ?

? Economic sanctions ??? …..Hahahahaha!
? a stern warning from the UN ??? …Hahahahaha!
? Do nothing ? …..

Yet, we continue to waste treasure playing in the sand :-(