PLA, Chinese foreign policy experts advocate preparations for war on Korean Peninsula

• Chinese military and government leaders are revising their contingency preparations for regime implosion in North Korea
• Plans now call for the establishment of refugee camps inside Chinese territory

As the potential for conflict between North Korea and the United States and its Asian allies fluctuates by the week, both Chinese military and civil authorities are advocating mobilising for the worst potential contingencies. Local authorities in China’s Jilin province in the northeastern region known as Dongbei, which shares a long border with North Korea, have already made preparations in case they end up being on the front line in a war on the Korean peninsula.

China Threatens India Over Border: “Leave Chinese Land Or Face War”

 

While the world’s eyes are focused on Syria, Russia, Ukraine, and North Korea; there is another – much more tense – fight between two nuclear powers that is getting far too little attention. The world’s two most populous nations, China and India, have been engaged in a border dispute for decades but in recent months it has flared once again with a Chinese Ministry of Defense official now warning explicitly that Indian troops must leave the contested Doklam area if they do not want war.

The latest standoff started more than a month ago after Chinese troops started building a road on a remote plateau, which is disputed by China and Bhutan.  Indian troops countered by moving to the flashpoint zone to halt the work, with China accusing them of violating its territorial sovereignty and calling for their immediate withdrawal.

PLA capable of removing Philippines military base in disputed area of South China Sea, warns Communist Party mouthpiece

The Philippines military vessel grounded on the shoal in 1999 and used a base. Photo: SCMP Pictures

 

China has shown patience, but it is committed to defending its territory, says commentary in the People’s Daily ahead of tribunal ruling on maritime disputes in the region

China is fully capable of removing a Philippine naval vessel set up as a permanent base in a disputed atoll in the South China Sea, but has so far shown restraint, the Chinese Communist Party mouthpiece said on Monday.

The commentary in the People’s Daily comes ahead of an imminent ruling from a international court in The Hague on China’s claims to territory in the region’s disputed waters. The case was bought by the Philippines.

Pentagon Warns of Conflict Over Chinese Buildup on Disputed Island

 

Beijing asserts Scarborough Shoal is Chinese territory

China’s plans to build up a disputed island near the Philippines could lead to a regional conflict, Defense Secretary Ash Carter told Congress on Thursday.

Carter was asked about the strategic significance of China’s plan to add military facilities to a disputed island known as Scarborough Shoal located about 120 miles—within missile range—of Subic Bay, Philippines, where U.S. warships will be based.

China Flexes Its Military Muscles While America Does Nothing

Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Photo: Chine Nouvelle/SIPA)

 

In the last few days, China has undertaken several new military actions. These include landing a military aircraft on one of their new artificial islands in the South China Sea, a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to a newly established military headquarters, and testing a new ICBM. The purpose is simple: To send messages to the rest of the world:

• China’s inflexible commitment to its territorial claims in the South China Sea, and
• China’s major military reforms which will make it a much more capable opponent

CHINA SECURITY: In Disputed Waters, China Is The Thief Who Yells ‘Stop Thief’

An island that China is building on the Fiery Cross Reef in the South China Sea. The Chinese regime is accusing the United States of “hegemony” for challenging its land-grab in the South China Sea. (Cliff Owen/AP)

 

The U.S. Navy sent a destroyer on a “freedom of navigation” mission through the Paracel island chain in the South China Sea, and the Chinese regime claims it will toughen its response to similar missions in the future.

On Jan. 30, the USS Curtis Wilbur passed within 12 nautical miles of the less than one-square mile Triton Island, which is claimed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam.

What’s ironic is that the Chinese regime is calling the incident an act to establish U.S. hegemony, when in fact it was to counter Chinese hegemony already being claimed over the entire region.

China’s response plays perfectly into the ancient Chinese saying: “It’s the thief who yells ‘stop thief.’”

China’s special forces a different breed from US: ex-intelligence officer

China’s Special Operation Forces (SOF) are very different from their American counterparts, wrote Dennis J. Blasko, a retired lieutenant colonel of the United States Army specializing as a Military Intelligence and Foreign Area Officer in China, in his article in Washington-based War on the Rock.

They are not established for direct action, strategic reconnaissance, unconventional warfare, foreign internal defense, civil affairs operations, counterterrorism or military information support operations, the main job description of US special forces, Blasko said. As a matter of fact, they are more similar to the 75th Ranger Regiment of the US Army.

What is China’s People’s Liberation Army doing in Hong Kong?

Hong Kong (CNN) — Just yards from where thousands of pro-democracy supporters have been “occupying” the heart of Hong Kong’s financial district, stands an imposing gray building surrounded on all sides by a high wall — this is the Hong Kong garrison of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), China’s armed forces.

The main gates of the base, known as the Prince of Wales barracks until London handed over the city to Beijing in 1997, are guarded by heavily armed sentries in green combat fatigues, who stand statue-like with impassive expressions 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

But despite the fact Hong Kong is a Chinese territory, the PLA garrison abides by local Hong Kong laws that emphasize the city’s considerable autonomy. In short they keep a low profile: the soldiers never come out onto the streets of the city, and there’s minimal interaction with the local population beyond the occasional open day.

China says military will respond to provocations

Legislative spokeswoman Fu Ying said China supports resolving disputes through negotiations and its 2.3 million-member People’s Liberation Army — the world’s largest — is for defensive purposes only.

However, Fu warned other nations not to test China’s resolve.

Chinese troops adopt new tactic, stop Indian Army from patrolling in its own territory

Amid a spate of incursions by China in Ladakh, its troops are also resorting to tactics like preventing the Indian Army from patrolling posts in this sector along the border which was well within India’s territory.

In what is being described as an aggressive approach by China, the tactics have come to the fore in the wake of yet another incident last week when Indian troops launched its patrol “Tiranga” from Trade Junction area in North of Ladakh for two posts located 14 km up in the higher reaches along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The Indian army personnel were stopped by Chinese troops who came mounted on heavy and light vehicles, official sources said on Sunday.

The patrol party was shown a banner that it was Chinese territory and that they cannot proceed to the posts, they said.

The sources said the Chinese troops were aggressive in their approach while stopping the Indian patrol who were at their posts.

China Holds Landing Exercises in Disputed Seas

BEIJING (AP) — China’s increasingly powerful navy paid a symbolic visit to the country’s southernmost territorial claim deep in the South China Sea this week as part of military drills in the disputed Spratly Islands involving amphibious landings and aircraft.

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The four-ship task force is headed next to the Pacific Ocean for deep-sea exercises via the Bashi Channel separating Taiwan and the Philippines, Xinhua said.

China Launches Stealth Frigate Amid Ocean Tensions

BEIJING (AP) — China has launched the first ship in a new class of stealth missile frigates, state media reported Tuesday, amid ongoing tensions with neighboring countries over Beijing’s maritime claims.

The People’s Liberation Army Navy is building a total of 20 Type 056 Jiangdao class frigates to replace older models and bolster its ability to conduct patrols and escort ships and submarines in waters it claims in the South China and East China seas.

Cyber Spies Spotted

Report: Chinese military cyber warfare units identified

China’s military is conducting extensive cyber warfare and spying operations through several electronic intelligence units, including a group identified for the first time called Beijing North Computing Center, according to a new report by a private research group.

“Chinese cyber espionage poses an advanced persistent threat to U.S. national and economic security,” states the report, set for publication Friday.

China Says Ready for ‘Escalation’ in Maritime Dispute With Philippines

China says it is ready to respond to “any escalation” by the Philippines, as a tense, month-long standoff continues over a disputed group of islands in the South China Sea.

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The state-run Xinhua news agency on Tuesday quoted Vice Foreign Minister Fu Ying as saying Beijing is not optimistic about the dispute over the Scarborough Shoal, located about 230 kilometers off the northwestern Philippines.

On Monday, Fu summoned a top Philippine diplomat in Beijing to make a “serious representation” over the situation. Fu told Charge D’affaires Alex Chua that Manila was escalating tensions and making it more difficult to reach a negotiated settlement.

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China says the islands, known as Huangyan in China, are a key part of Chinese territory and that any Philippine claim to them is baseless. The Philippines says the shoal is well within its internationally recognized exclusive economic zone.

The Philippines, China, Vietnam, Taiwan, Malaysia and Brunei all have competing claims in the South China Sea.  China claims nearly the entire energy-rich region.

Full article: China Says Ready for ‘Escalation’ in Maritime Dispute With Philippines (Voice of America)