China is conducting its largest military drills around Taiwan in decades in response to a visit to the island by US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), whose plane landed in Taipei on Tuesday night.
China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) said it will conduct a series of military operations surrounding Taiwan, and announced “strong military responses” were underway as soon as Pelosi’s plane landed.
According to The South China Morning Post, the PLA said the response will include joint air and naval patrols to the north, southwest, and southeast of Taiwan’s coastline and airspace. The drills will also include long-distance, live-fire artillery shooting in the Taiwan Strait, as well as missile test firings in the waters east of the island.
“This action is a solemn deterrent against the recent major escalation of the negative actions of the United States on the Taiwan issue, and a serious warning to the Taiwanese forces seeking independence,” a spokesman for the PLA’s Eastern Theater Command said in a statement.
On top of the current military drills, the Chinese news agency Xinhua released a notice that said the PLA will be closing off six areas around Taiwan for live-fire drills from 12 PM Thursday to 12 PM Sunday (Beijing time).
China is expected to have a greater response to Pelosi’s trip than it did during the Third Taiwan Strait Crisis, which was sparked in 1995 by the US giving a visa to former Taiwanese President Lee Teng-hui. Beijing responded by launching a series of missile tests toward Taiwan, and the tensions lasted for months, with the US sending two aircraft carriers through the Taiwan Strait.
While China is preparing massive military exercises in response to Pelosi’s trip, the US is sending more military assets to the region, heightening the chance of an accident between the two militaries. Four US warships, including an aircraft carrier, took up positions east of Taiwan before Pelosi’s plane landed. Her plane was reportedly escorted by at least eight US Air Force warplanes, including F-15s.
Thanks Nanc.
With the coming to office of the Biden Administration we are deep into ever more wars and conflicts as he drives relentlessly to bring down all global adversaries in the drive for world hegemony.
With the votes of every last Democratic member of Congress for $40 billion more for the US proxy war against Russia to the last Ukrainian, the Dem Party further established itself as the leading Party of War. (68 House and Senate Republicans including principled anti-interventionists like Thomas Massie opposed it. All Dem “progressives” including Sanders and the Squad voted for the war funding.)
With the Dem leader of the House now in Taiwan to push ahead with a US proxy war against China to the last Taiwanese, the Dem Party even more firmly establishes itself as the leading Party of War. Here again “progressives” like Ro Khanna are fully on board.
No person who is in favor of peace can possibly vote for this squalid imperial Party.
Our elections have gotten to the point where we’re trying to identify the lesser of two evils.
Always seems 2B lesser evil determining our voting. Politics makes strange bedfellows. Always has and surely always will. Peace guy me now supporting Russian invasion to prevent NATO putting U.S. nuke armed missiles on Ukraine & Russian border for first strike advantage and blackmail. I am a peace first guy, but not a pacifist ostrich! There are times when good men must take up arms to defend their homeland. I see this war as just such a situation for the Russians. Before the American Revolution the Quakera were a thriving community in colonial America where I live. When revolution against British Colonial regal control and taxation began, many Quakers were torn by the choice to support the Queen or take up arms against the Red Coats who were the enforcers of the crown, or the third choice at the time, go to the places where there was no revolutionary fervor. When the dust settled, the victorious revolutionary colonialists shunned those who did not support independence from British Imperial administration, and Quakerism suffered a debilitating blow. It went from the dominant confession to barely present today. Such was the precipitate of Quaker reticence to rebel.
And of course, evil is still evil.
The Republicans signed on including McConnell. The two are war parties.
There are some principled anti-war types in congress although VERY few and far between. But to say one party is anything that resembles a peace party, or is less war mongering, is ridiculous. I would guess the majority voted against because they counted noses and knew it would pass easily. Similar to what the dems did when W did Iraq.
China blinked, unfortunately. All the “after-thought” drills and exercises can’t change that. Read Andrei Martyanov’s view of this. The failure of China to react correctly makes the situation more dangerous.
OK, Let’s Cut The Crap…
https://smoothiex12.blogspot.com/2022/08/ok-lets-cut-crap.html
It’s obvious that Biden/Blinken is trying to provoke China using Taiwan as the bait. As we saw in Russia, their strategy will be to wait for a response, then use it to “justify” all manner of sanctions, including the seizure of China’s vast holdings in the US.
But I’d like to think that Xi is too smart for that. China has already started banning the sale of goods imported from Taiwan. I won’t be particularly surprised if they start dumping their US Treasury bonds.
This administration is betting that China has more to lose than we do if trade is disrupted. But, even if they’re right, the 𝐛𝐞𝐬𝐭 outcome we could expect would be a Pyrrhic victory.
I agree that economic responses will be more effective in the short term than military responses. But a military response was justified in this incident and could easily have been done without resulting in a major military clash. Simply intercepting Pelosi’s plane en route and escorting it to a Chinese mainland base could have been done. I don’t see how the US or Taiwan could have responded effectively in time. Hold Pelosi for 24 hours, then send her packing. No shots fired, total humiliation for the US. The US could complain if the intercept took place over international waters, but still couldn’t do anything about it. If China sent up enough jets and did the intercept in Chinese or Taiwan waters, Taiwan probably would not be able to match the Chinese jets or respond in time, and likely neither could whatever air wing is on the Reagan.
And China had other options as well. As Martyanov says, they could have done these “drills and exercises” before Pelosi arrives, not after.
Unless China escalates over the next couple days, it will end up looking weak over this incident.
The US regime would have loved for the Chinese regime to have intervened in such a way. In fact, if Chinese aircraft had attempted to “escort” her plane, I’d be surprised if US aircraft didn’t shoot it down and blame the Chinese for it. She’s a useless figurehead alive. Dead — “martyred” — she would have been a great excuse to send China’s blue water fleet to the bottom of the Taiwan Strait.
Her instinct for greed, the essential bourgeois political attribute, is still virgo intacta, and the ruling elite have great cause to love her for it.
You seem convinced that it would be Chinese fleet to the bottom of the Taiwan Strait, instead of he American fleet. Why are you so confident in the outcome?
Because I’ve read about the operational performance of the PRC’s anti-ship missiles.
Rand Corporation’s war scenarios indicate China would win.
Yeah, sorry China did not isolate themselves internationally or start ww3 like they were set up to. Let’s see what happens over the next bit to judge who “blinks” …
There’s no chance of China “isolating themselves” any more than Russia has, and China could have responded militarily in a way that did not risk WWIII. However, you are correct that China might be able to “make up for” its inadequate response in the near time. We’ll see. But if they don’t, they will have made the situation more dangerous because the US will try again and soon.
Nancy Pelosi is supposed to be my representative in Congress. She never asked us constituents if she might abandon us and go off on a junket to the Far East, including Taiwan.
As speaker, her obvious duty is to preside over the House of Representatives. It’s in Washington, DC — not Taipei, ROC.
At best, Ms. Pelosi must divide her attention between the two jobs. In practice, our 12th CD gets scant representation. But if we cannot depend on her to do either job, why must we San Franciscans keep reelecting her?
Now it turns out that her unnecessary trip to Taiwan may be provoking a war with the biggest nation in the world, nuclear-armed China. She endangers not only everyone in her city but the people of the whole world.
If we get out of this mess, shouldn’t San Franciscans start thinking seriously about acquiring some real representation for a change?
yes you San Franciscans should start thinking seriously about acquiring some real representation for a change
Try and trade up! Nancy is a ‘has been’…
If I thought Pelosi were actually concerned about anything other than her domestic position, both political and social, and further, not married to a finance guy who apparently illegally tipped her off recently to make vast $$ on the stock market, I’d say, yes, she has the right to travel where she wants. But she is such an egregious symbol and active participant in what is driving the US into ongoing war, up to and perhaps including nuclear, I loathe her ego-driven decision to fly into, Taiwan, give the piteously grateful peons there the benefit of her wisdom and then fly off again. (Fundamentally she views all not of her political/social/monetary class as peons.)
Start stocking up on toothpaste, TP, and antibiotics my friends.
Start stocking up on toothpaste, TP, and antibiotics my friends.
Funny but true.
Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden are enemies of the people!
CT:
I very much agree, how do you want to deal with it?…
I am in favor of public stoning…
I’m always in favor of a public stoning. But more of a Bob Dylan type stoning. You know, “everybody must get stoned”. 😉
LOL!…
And what did this trip accomplish (so far)?
– 10 “tough on China” political points for Nance. (woohoo?)
– largest Chinese military exercises around Taiwan
– America aircraft carriers and planes all moving into Strait
– Ever closer toward sparking a nuclear war
– Rising anti-Asian violence at home – see this latest one- elderly Asian lady in SF (Nancy’s own city..)got beaten down and kicked in her apartment building,
https://abc7news.com/asian-woman-beaten-in-sf-attacked-by-four-people-elderly-kicked-head-san-francisco-senior-attacks/12091867/
-Exports bans on hundreds of Taiwanese exports
And just to think, a week ago we had perfect peace in the Taiwan Strait.
so very worth it…
Peace is slightly over rated…
The Duran analyzes – uploaded before the actual visit – this event.
Nancy Pelosi, Taiwan and China (Live)
https://www.youtube.com/c/TheDuran/videos
Who gave a shit about Taiwan!
Ukraine war is there and now Taiwan should be invaded by China,and time is so right,if they don’t do it now then when they are going to see another perfect time to invade,
If nothing comes after this,then most likely Shi Jing ping will forced to resign and nobody will listen what he says if he stays.
Night is approaching. Broadcast on all channels; “China does not wish to attack Chinese people on Taiwan. Chinese mainland troops are just off shore and headed straight to your nearest military bases. China will not interfere with Island governance or military. China plans to establish bases with shared harbors as a method to stop external meddler war mongering. Nothing will change inside Taiwan. Taiwan may place a delegation in Chinese governance. China is coming ashore at military bases with ambassadors. There are no plans to shoot anybody.
China has completed massive military travel toward the closest Taiwanese military bases. Ending US/NATO social terrorism is now ready for checkmate via import and export freezes.
Wow! brilliant strategy, a bloodless invasion, none of the War State think-tankers expected that.
“Chinese mainland troops are just off shore and headed straight to the bottom of the Strait.”
Fixed, no charge.
Fixed is right. If they fire on Mainland fleet, its curtains for their “independence!!!!!” I PREDICT…. Like a mouse bitting an elephant as I see it. Now seems a bad time to me for Tiwan to cross any of the redest of red lines of China, especially with the U.S. distracted with their hot ‘proxy’ war in Ukraine. Not only is it braindead diplomacy, it flies in face of military expedience!!!
That would depend on how many troops transports and amphibious craft the mainland fleet has and how well it can defend those ships.
The answers those questions appear to be “13,” “21,” and “not very well.”
But yes, it’s possible that the mainland regime could land enough infantry to get their very own Afghanistan. Which is what US very likely wants, along with an excuse to send the PLA’s three aircraft carriers to the bottom.
Every time some foreign power goes to war and the US pretends not to like it, the screaming starts that the US “provoked” or “baited” that power into it. What never seems to occur to the screamers is that if the US wants the bait to be taken, that’s a good reason not to take it.
The US foreign policy establishment has its reasons for wanting war with China. One is that such a war is more winnable now than it would be, say, 20 years from now when China has a larger and more formidable blue water fleet. Another is that with domestic politics and the domestic economy going to sh*t, a war is both a welcome distraction and an excuse for imposing “discipline” on the populace.
China knows they can unified Taiwan with the Mainland in matter of days… Their military drills around the island is more focus on deterring US hands off the island. Most Taiwanese prefer the island status quote so China can topple the current government and replace it with an anti-US one…!
If it was just Pelosi’s visit, I would say the Chinese are overreacting for a purpose; however, this is part of a pattern of provoking China that we have seen since Biden came to power. They even got tiny Lithuania to piss at the Chinese in order to draw the EU into the conflict.
“this is part of a pattern of provoking China that we have seen since Biden came to power.”
Yes, because Donnie “kung flu” Trump was so much more into treating China with respect.
A external enemy is always useful to rulers to keep the populace from looking at the corruption and incompetence of their own government.
Anti-Chinese sentiments are bipartisan in the US; however, with Biden it is far more calculated. Trump loved big but ineffectual gestures to try to intimidate the opponent by chest beating.
The proof is in the pudding: the Chinese clearly preferred Trump as president.
Bullshit. Do you really believe we wouldn’t be doing the same thing under Trump is he had won a second term? The belligerence was just hitting full throttle when he left office.
State media could have made Mother Theresa into a terrorist if they had wanted to.
maybe china will send some buckets of rusty bolts ships into those red areas and make a big scene out of blowing them up.
anyway, don’t ever write china or russia off as primitive, because both countries have taken uncle sam by surprise in the last 5 years or so with a submarine popping up off the west coast here and waving a flag before disappearing again.
As somebody said, Russia endured 8 years of escalating provocations from Uncle shylock..But when Russia was ready and US/NATO stuck its neck out too far in the Ukraine, the Russian axe came down and the world changed overnight. US learned it in Georgia in 08.08.08, followed by hollow US threats from a safe distance and then they ran away with a blue eye, then defeating US isis proxies in Syria and ultimately, in the ukraine.
China has a lot to learn but it isn’t over yet …
https://twitter.com/MaxBlumenthal/status/1554698177781108736
Take a listen at the dementia speech Pelosi just gave in Taipei – Benjamin Franklin was apparently one of our presidents now. Why is this crazy woman allowed to conduct foreign policy?
Proof positive, this is a mental 6 yr old trying to speak ex tempore on an adult subject.
After watching the clip, I didn’t know if I should laugh or cry.
I can’t even watch it.
Because she IS a crazy woman?…!
Chest pumping then bumping in the drink is a game for fools..
Or..maybe:
The CIA has intelligence that China has plans to invade Taiwan and know the longer we wait the less likely it can be stopped.
Nancy Pelosi’s trip is intended to trigger their exact test response, so our military and observe and make sure we are prepared for the real event.
The Chinese have zero regard for the environmental damages they are causing or the fact that they are corrupt in their business dealings. Anyone on Anti War dot com that thinks Xi Jinpin has peaceful intentions is certainly misguided.
Should scare us into retreating into areas of our own spheres of interest in the Western Hemisphere, and even then we could become less imperialist.
We could, but so could China. You seem to view the world through a yellow lens, where were always wrong for some reason. I can agree we are wrong often, but just as often in response to another wrong.
Our imperialism IS ALWAYS WRONG and so is sticking our nose into areas that only a wannabe Hegemon would. If you can’t figure out that Taiwan is far more of a concern to China than it is to the United States, you’re hopeless. We’ve treated Taiwan like a pawn in big power maneuvering ever since Nixon/Kissinger, especially when we cut them adrift in 1979. Richard Holbrooke of Dayton Accords infamy, went all over Asia proclaiming how we stood by our commitments, and then Taiwan found out on the RADIO that we were withdrawing diplomatic relations with them, removing all US military forces, and abrogating the Taiwan-US Mutual Defense Treaty. Such a dependable ally there, we were. We’d be content if we made Taiwan into a killing field like we have made UKraine into one.
China is in their sphere of influence as it pertains to Taiwan Province. So you agree that other nations should have come to the rescue of Iraq, Afghanistan, Serbia, Libya and Syria in response to our wrong? Your arms dealers are flowing in the cash – good job with supporters like you. You seem to view the world thru swastika-like glasses where we set all the rules and every other portion of the world must obey or become an adversary (and if carried too far, an enemy).
Why should “we” be involved? You think we are the masters of the world? Talk about hubris and arrogance!! We don’t even recognize Taiwan as a nation and proclaim a One China policy.
When we had diplomatic relations with Taiwan we also had a One China policy – that being the ridiculous, dumb ass position that Taipei was the legal government of all of China.
Why? Becuase they make 90% of the chips needed to make the products we use, and it’s of vital national interest that China can’t just block them from supplying us and our allies with them. That’s enough of a reason for me.
Empire simps like to say that Taiwan being governed by Beijing would cut the world off from microchips.
Right, sure, because if there’s one thing we know about China, it’s that it never sells anything to other countries.
It’s more of China’s shift to wanting to replace our global hegemony. You outta know the rich folk that own the empire don’t like that, and start to think irrationally when they feel threatened. And they have nukes, and aren’t use to being bullied. It’s a dangerous game. The best thing for US, would be for China and our government to find a mutual agreement and stop this trade war nonsense. It takes both sides to compromise for that.
Xi is interesting in projecting power, hit term is coming up.
Biden is afraid to look weak on China, the Dems have mid terms coming up.
There are other factors at play here. We’re just pawns in their games.
At least they would appear to be attempting to be doing it by peaceful means, while we export weapons all over the place.
I mean that’s our business model since WWII, you got oil, we got guns for and nukes for sale right?
You mean they would use economic warfare, of the type that we mastered with all of our sanctions on any nation that goes so far as to look at us the wrong way?
Maybe you should take the tack that our policy dictates then, no independence that China will not tolerate for Taiwan – then your precious chips will continue to be manufactured and shipped to us.
Didn’t think of it – but maybe that’s part of the reason for China’s actions too. They need those chips too. If Taiwan fell totally under the sway of the US, we’d certainly cut off chip exports from Taiwan to China, because our sanction/embargo history leaves no doubt we would do that.
I think BOTH sides are being over aggressive and taking extreme measures and bypassing diplomacy. China has been openly supportive of Putin, who has by all accounts made himself the enemy of the NATO and the US. He’s been agressively expanding in the Indo Pacific region, and stealing intellectual properly and hacking our computer systems for decades, which is my area of expertise.
They don’t respect rule of law, as they accuse us of being an unrelaible parter. Xi Jinpin, is the problem and main catalyst for the destruction of a relationship that worked well for both sides for 3 decades. Just as Putin, is, almost singlehandedly responsible for his criminal and callous behavior that ruined what was once a growing partnership between the former Soviet Union.
I agree about your last statement, but two wrongs dont’ make a right. The world is in trouble right now, as we have a bunch of nuclear armed criminals that are more like corporate pirates and economic terrorists than they are political leaders. Diplomacy is dead. I am including our heads of state among them in that comment.
I guess, what I don’t quite understand is why you would favor an autocratic system over a republic or democracy. Why you would favor foreign adverseries over our own country, assuming you are from here. Why you fail to see, that diplomacy and reason, are the only way out of this that ends well.
Stop wrongly assuming I support and believe everything our government does is just. It’s not.
We should back off:
https://www.lewrockwell.com/2022/08/david-stockman/nancy-pelosis-utterly-reckless-election-season-gambit/
Thank you, that was well written and informative. I agree with the premise, it was reckless. I think it was politically motivated. Pelosi is one of my least favorite people in politics, so trust me I don’t have any love for her or her ideals. I think it means a few things when it boils down to it, for her:
1. American hegomony
2. The upcoming elections, as pointed out in that article, the Republicans and hawks are going to use any weakness against China as a political attack in November.
3. Arms sales. She and her donors will surely profit from the arms sales to Taiwan.
4. They need a war and distractions to displace blame because our economy is in shambles now because they have done a horrible job of managing it as they rob us blind.
I take it that you were 100% totally opposed the Obama/Biden/Clinton regime overthrowing that last legal DEMOCRATICALLY elected government of Ukraine then? Not for us to determine the forms of government of other nations. We have never been given the authority to be the arbiter of forms of government that other nation-states determine for themself/selves.
Yes, I already told you I blame them, TO A DEGREE, for Ukraine. Putin also didn’t have to react like a monster.
True – he could have kept appeasing NATO and let them eventually arm Ukraine to the teeth, like they had already begun. He could have watched while the Russian speaking eastern Ukrainians were going to be killed.
I don’t know enough about that to debate it. It does seem they embedded a bunch of extremist into government and hired and actor as president.
A government is not “our country”, because by that rationale any citizen who didn’t support Trump’s actions when he was President or any Administration’s actions would be a sign of “being against our country.” That would sound more autocratic than democratic.
And, Pelosi’s visit was not “diplomacy” but a ratcheting up of the tensions and increasing the risk of resorting to militarism.
It would be nationalistic. Which we saw plenty of with Trumps rise in power.
Trump never rose in power. He was always tamped down somewhat by the Intelligence Community, aka: MIC, Deep State, etc., because that’s who actually runs our foreign policy
You are probably right about this, because he didn’t even know what a hyper sonic missile was when Putin mentioned it to him.
https://thecradle.co/Article/Columns/13830
How a missile in Kabul connects to a Speaker in Taipei. Pepe Escobar.
China can’t afford to let Taiwan be our unsinkable aircraft carrier as MacArthur called it. Lt Col MacGregor pointed out that Japan thought of it that way too, and launched most of their key naval missions from Taiwan (including Pearl Harbor). If Taiwan claimed total neutrality in return for limited autonomy from China, there might be a different outcome than the eventual calamitous one for them if they continue down their current path