Originally appeared at Zero Hedge
“War is not far from us. Regional situations around China are complex and unstable, and dangers are hiding under the peace. China cannot afford a military failure, so we must be fully aware of potential crisis and be prepared for battle at all times. When the country is on the brink of becoming a great military power, it’s also stepping into a period with high risks to national security,” the official People’s Liberation Army (PLA) newspaper wrote according to China’s Global Times.
The article first headlined on Tuesday in the PLA daily: “A soldier without desire for war-preparedness is not a good soldier.” The newspaper warned that Chinese soldiers are not ready for combat because many refuse to believe war is imminent.
Military experts agree that the threat of a conflict around China has increased in recent years.
“In regions like the Korea Peninsula, China-India border area and the Taiwan Straits, the PLA needs to be prepared for all possibilities. Our overseas interests in regions like Africa and the Middle East are also under threat due to local instability,” said Xu Guangyu, a retired major general and senior adviser of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association according to the Global Times.
Last week, President Xi Jinping kicked off the new year with a rare speech to the military urging soldiers to be ready for war and “don’t fear death.”
China’s soldiers should “neither fear hardship nor death,” Xi told thousands of troops during an inspection visit last Wednesday to the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Central Theater Command in northern Hebei province, according to the official Xinhua news agency.
The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has been conducting war drills at home and abroad involving most of its military branches. China’s most advanced military aircraft including the J-20 stealth fighter jet, the Y-20 transport aircraft, the H-6k bomber, and the J-16, J-11B J-10C fighter jets have been drilling since the start of the year.
More from the PLA Daily:
The J-20 is conducting air combat training with other fighter planes including the J-16. The J-20 is also practicing beyond-visual-range air combat, and other aircraft, including the Y-20 and the J-10C, are training at unspecified airports on a “plateau region” in order to improve their capability in long-range military transport and air combat.
The Economic Times identifies the “plateau region” as the “Tibetan plateau which covered a long Line of Actual Control (LAC) between India and China.”
While North Korea continues to be a great distraction, China is gearing up for conflict with India on the LAC, according to Global Times.
Potential military conflicts in plateau regions have been on the rise since the border friction with India last year, so increasing military training in the plateau region is highly necessary, a retired PLA officer who used to serve in the air force and asked not to be named, told the Global Times.
“India’s ground force has some advantages in quantity in the border areas, so if conflict happens, China’s air force needs to seize domination of the skies and immediately create an overwhelming advantage for China,” said the officer.
In 2018, China’s urgent caution to its armed forces to prepare for war has been a telling sign that an event is imminent. While many focus on the developments on the Korean Peninsula, the real showdown is emerging between the two nuclear superpowers divided by the Line of Actual Control. What could possibly go wrong when the world’s two most populous nations are increasing at each other’s throat.
May be I am missing something, but a war between China and India just makes no sense. A few miles of rather worthless border territory is just not worth the conflict. The only rational that I can see is inflated national ego. The only benedictory would be the rival powers of India and China. We all know who they are. In fact such powers would promote such a conflict.
China needs to focus on the one true enemy, the USA, Any waist of effort put into ridiculous local disputes will only make China’s ultimate defeat all the more likely.
Paul, the issue is that the US/Israel have partnered with India to confront China using Afghanistan as a springboard and Pakistan as an excuse, accusing them as being a terrorist sponsoring state. Afghanistan government is controlled by the US/NATO and by including India as a de facto member they have intentions of disrupting and stopping China’s OBR/Silk road project that also includes Pakistan as a gateway to ME and Africa.
Very intresting.
Further reading regarding US/India relationship. https://journal-neo.org/2018/01/12/is-trump-afghan-policy-aimed-at-taliban-or-at-china/
Thank you, even more intresting.
Truely interesting.Never trust bow and arrow boys biggest traitors on world stage.
“the US/Israel have partnered with India to confront China”
India was, for many years, non-aligned and was in fact the leading country within the non-aligned movement. During this time India fought a relatively small war with China: The 1962 Sino-Indian Border Conflict.
Tension over the border is longstanding and predates any Indian alignment with the US.
Have a read:- https://journal-neo.org/2018/01/12/is-trump-afghan-policy-aimed-at-taliban-or-at-china/
Graeme only likes selective reading too much information hurts his head , like John Travolta said in the role of Vinnie Barbarino “I am sooo confused!”, lmao.
The Chinese Indian border dispute isn’t even mentioned in the article you referred me to…
It’s the US actually China is worried about not india.
China is definitely preparing as US is quite certain to make go at North Korea after the Olympics.
Can see all the preparations .
Very dangerous . Just hope for the best as Trump is one very unpredictable and too arrogant to lose face type. So far his attitude has been , he is the greatest and smartest and he is the strongest.
Sadly most here will be too foolish to understand the REAL meaning behind the report.
War is NOT coming to the Far East first- what the Chinese leaders are doing is what the leaders of so many nations did in the run up to WW1 and WW2. War is IN THE AIR- great war, planet scale war. China is NOT talking about regional conflict, but having to be ready, just as Putin told his manufacturing industries to be ready, for a world increasing at war.
The Deep State is in the very final stages for its nuclear war on Iran- mainstream and fake indy media sources have been saturated with planted stories NORMALISING nuclear war and the use of nukes this last 12 months. America’s war on Iran will be the most murderous and concentrated in its history so far.
When America (and France, and Britain and Germany) bring holocaust to Iran sometime in the next few months, everything changes. The rules will have been altered forever. Iran may even be able to deploy BIOLOGICAL weapons in response to its utter destruction by thousands of ‘small’ nuclear strikes. Iran will have literally nothing to lose.
The demons that run the Deep State know what they are doing. And the Chinese see Putin sit on his hands, and know that no partnership with Russia can stop the Deep State now.
Look at the run up to WW2 when Hitler was very carefully encouraged to run amok by those really in power in Britain, America and France. Other thinkers couldn’t believe what was happening but understood they lacked the power to stop it. So all they could do was prepare for the worst.
Look at thickie Trump’s actions today over Iran- and what are Iran’s “CRIMES”? To have helped defeat Wahhabi terror in Iraq and Syria. To have helped Lebanon prevent a jewish holocaust of that nation. To have worked to give itself as good a defense as possible against Israeli and America aggression.
Iran’s ‘crimes’ are the very opposite of crimes, but Putin sits on his hands, and ensures no good Russian defense systems are sold to Iran, and covertly backs every act of horror by Israel and America against Iran. For Putin, keeping Russia a slave to the jews is more important than world peace.
So NO, China is NOT predicting regional war, but predicting all over planetary chaos when the Deep State wars of aggression are stepped up. The ‘tea leaves’ China is reading are of the planet, NOT of the region. And China knows, so very correctly, that it doesn’t matter where WORLD WAR starts, for world war will set everyone aflame sooner or later.
Decent argument you have but have to disagree on a number of your theories. One can not deduce from the past world wars and predict a similar recurring scenario. Would be like taking Nostradamus predictions at face value and manufacturing the result equal to the claim as in statistics. US will go and threaten the world because it is losing control of it’s dollar hegemony and they are being limited in printing more dollars. US military is just for show, majority of the personnel are under trained, not suitable, lack fighting skills and are fundamentally cowards. As for the military weapons, armaments, machinery and equipment they are either not functioning, over priced, lack qualified staff or are a bluff. You are correct that the US will try something but it will be a bluff because there neocons do not want to die. Survival instincts will take over.
Your theories go off in too many directions as when you start accusing Russia sitting on it’s hands , they have always faced Western interference there ’96 was when they had made the biggest inroads. Russia plays more pragmatically and thinking they are not doing enough to deal with Turkey and the US Unholy Alliance you are far from seeing how this game is played.
China is not as naive to these things and their stance has always been one of preparation. They are also not adverse to learning and developing new strategies in combating internal terrorism. The Chinese have conducted all training on all of it’s borders as they see in the plateau it might be more of a war of terrorism, as the Indian government is realizing that this dangerous game can affect their on country. They are both looking at this aspect as this is the new type of war by the colonials being exploited today. Bhutan is an easily bought region with US dollars , they keep forgetting the US has a tendency to withdraw it over time an make even more demands all the time.
The issue would be tiny Bhutan and that would be a catalyst area as it would be used by the US to stage terrorism attacks of Al Qaeda /ISIS/ Ughuirs , but by that time happens Bhutan will be a government in exile.There are always counter strategies to oppose this and some are easy to implement one would be to keep tensions by India and China high so this way they could catch it in the bud between the two countries, using a questionable reason for the dispute would be ideal to make anyone think they are enemies. Chess is a game played by the masters and not some bunch of checker players even Mahjong is beyond their scope of thinking.
We will have to watch how events unfold there as they quite some time off in that region, events still have to unfold elsewhere.
Russia is not providing up to date air defence i.e SA 400 or panstar weapons to Iran…
The truth is, China, whom usually never boast, nor brags, intimidates, not threatens, before they see it is coming, and always impeccable and highly conscious on what words they use, and this is the first time I have read they come out on this level, and I agree, its not India what is the real problem, hehe, to attack China is and will be the single most dumbest thing the Indians have donw since the stone age, and we all know whom Modi is sucking up to this days, when even Pakistan have managed to dig out some common sense, the Indians walk straight into the jaws on the Imperial Banana Republic UssA.
I know, the Chines isnt joking, and really hope they are not, Russia, well, so far, so good, but the showdown will come, sooner or later, and then we will know, the Impisses will never end this quest, tactics may change, but the goal remains the same, Full Spectrum Dominance, by all means.
I am in fact deeply disapionted by the Indians, one should think they are more sane that this. Tsk, tsk, tsk, stupid people.
peace
India as non – aligned made sense , scrapping with China or Pakistan is completely a waste of time and energy . Seems American banks have smoked the Indians and they don’t even know it . China , normally not childish , has been even more crazy . They have brought Blackwater into the security of Belt Road . One would think they were more sane as well .
– “Are we already fighting a war? In modern conflict, the fighting can begin long before a country is officially “at war”….. “Arguably, there is a warfighting domain in which there is already activity underway,” the head of Forces Command, Major General Gus McLachlan, said.” (Talisman Sabre: Australian military enacts war in a bid to prepare for ’emerging threats’, [Australian] ABC News, 16/07/2017)
– “The US military-intelligence complex is engaged in systematic preparations for World War III. As far as the Pentagon is concerned, a military conflict with China and/or Russia is inevitable, and this prospect has become the driving force of its tactical and strategic planning…. Each of the hearings presumed a major US conflict with another great power (sometimes unnamed, sometimes explicitly designated as China or Russia) within a relatively short time frame, years rather than decades.” (Washington prepares for World War III, WSWS, 5 November 2015)
– “A report [entitled “Countering China’s Adventurism in the South China Sea”] released last month by the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments (CSBA) calls for the incoming Trump administration to initiate a major escalation of the US confrontation with China over the South China Sea. It is written by Ross Babbage, a former top-level Australian defence and intelligence official….. Babbage insists that the US and its allies must confront China sooner rather than later…… Central to the strategy is a major military build-up in Asia, coordinated between the US and its allies, principally Australia and Japan, and the willingness of Washington to use military force to provoke, intimidate, undermine and if necessary, wage war against China.” (US think tank urges Trump to confront China in South China Sea, WSWS, By Peter Symonds, 3 January 2017)
– “the Australian military is being integrated into the US military’s AirSea Battle doctrine. Under this plan, US forces will launch attacks on the Chinese mainland, while Australian forces will cut off China’s maritime trade links with the Middle East and Africa, starving its economy of oil, gas and other essential resources.” (Sydney’s week-long military extravaganza foreshadows new wars, 11 October 2013)
– “The report [‘Australia-Japan-US Maritime Cooperation’ by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies] contains specific recommendations to enhance “inter-operability” on intelligence and surveillance, submarine and anti-submarine warfare, amphibious forces and logistics….. The report’s author, Andrew Shearer, is a senior figure in the Australian foreign policy and military establishment…. Shearer is also very well connected in Washington [and] makes clear [the] main “hard security” objective is to prepare for war with China. The Pentagon’s preoccupation with “freedom of navigation” and China’s A2/AD [Anti-Access, Area Denial] systems flows directly from its military strategy for war with China—Air Sea Battle…. Australia and Japan are central to Air Sea Battle and associated strategies, which include a naval blockade of China to strangle its economy…… [Air Sea Battle] relies on networked, integrated forces to take the offensive across air, maritime, land, space and cyberspace…..” (CSIS report argues for strong US-Japan-Australia alliance against China, 9 April 2016)
While the prevention of military conflict remains a priority for China, there is broad recognition that unwanted (imposed) situations may occur regardless of such efforts. U.S.-allied war preparations against the DPRK, U.S. efforts to polarise S China Sea disputes, Taiwan (with the U.S. and Japan assisting in the pursuit of partition, a situation that will result in war), tensions with India, etc., are potential conflict zones.
p2. As the U.S.-Japan-Australia-S Korea-Taiwan coalition increase their interoperable capabilities/military build-up in anticipation of military conflict, China has no reasonable option but to implement counter-measures/reciprocal preparations.
Note: Japan, Australia and S Korea are being integrated into U.S. missile architecture (land and sea based). ABM/BMD systems are compatible with offensive [and nuclear capable] missile components.
The U.S. intention of establishing further military/missile architecture in Taiwan, S Korea, Japan and potentially in a regime changed DPRK is uncompromising and will proceed regardless of political concerns (a situation openly stated by various U.S. military officials) .
The objective is the eventual achievement of nuclear primacy (fast decapitation first strike potential with surviving retaliatory missile interception capabilities). Australia is a key participant in allied war preparations against China (evident through strategic policy documents, the hosting and build-up of U.S. military forces, the nature of joint military exercises and broad integration into U.S. military/missile architecture [with the procurement of naval based offensive cruise missile capable systems disingenuously claimed to be ‘defensive’ systems]).
If the situation of war is in time imposed on China, defence agreements would translate to some form of assistance by the Russian Federation. The enhancement of Sino-Russian military cooperation is timely and necessary.
Additional references: – “Japan is playing a key role in the implementation of the dangerous and destabilising US global BMD plans……. an increased level of interoperability of the two countries’ air defence systems has been achieved. The US and Japan are developing an improved Standard Missile-3 Block IIA interceptor. Tokyo has approved the deployment of two AN/TPY-2 forward-based radars in Japan. A decision to deploy two US Aegis Ashore land-based systems in Japan would be in line with this dangerous policy…… Aegis Ashore includes vertical launch systems capable of launching offensive weapons, including Tomahawk cruise missiles.” [Mikhail Ulyanov, Foreign Ministry Department for Non-Proliferation and Arms Control]: (Foreign Ministry Clarifies Russian Attitude Towards Issues Of Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, Southfront, 21/12/2017)
– “The Hobart-class guide-air warfare guided missile destroyer is the newest ship class in the RAN. It is equipped with the Aegis Combat System and AN/SPY1 radar…… The vessels are equipped with the MK 41 Vertical Launch System….. Two other destroyers in the class are under construction.” (Lockheed Martin receives contract for Australian AEGIS systems, by Stephen Carlson, UPI, Jul 11, 2017)
– “Mk 41s can be used for launching both SM-3 interceptor missiles and medium to range Tomahawk cruise missiles.” (US Missiles’ Deployment to Romania, Poland Banned Under INF Treaty – Moscow, 26/04/2017)
– “BAE Systems [is manufacturing] Mk 14 Mod 2 Tomahawk missile launching canisters for the U.S. Navy. The canisters will [enable] loading of the U.S. Navy’s Tactical Tomahawk Missile for firing from the Mk 41 Vertical Launching System (VLS).” (US Navy Orders New Mk14 Tactical Tomahawk Missile Launching Canisters, Deagel, April 28, 2008)
– “Semantics may deceive the civilian layman, but the Russians have always known the “shield” is a sword….. Mk-14 canisters containing Tomahawk cruise missile have the same dimensions as the Mk-21din that launches the anti-ballistic missle SM-3 block 1b. The Tomahawk missile is armed with the miniaturized nuclear warhead W80 50 kt. American technology enables also replacing the Mk 142 kinetic cargo of rocket missile SM-3 Block 1b with the miniature nuclear warhead W80, from the cruise mini-rocket AGM-86 ALCM (which has the same mass as the SM-3 Block 1b). ” (US Anti-Missile Shield or Sword?, Valentin Vasilescu (Katehon), 23/06/2016)
– “We are perfectly aware that missile defense systems are defensive only in name. In fact, this is a significant component of a strategic offensive potential,” [V. Putin]
It’s rhetoric to keep the western borders calm. In the game of Go, threatening a move is often as effective as actually making it. This is about the new transeurasian corridors. Is India building one of their own, will Pakistan play ball with China? The rhetoric is regrettable. On a side note: of course Chinese soldiers should be ready for hardship and death, after all, none of the elite’s boys are in it.
If a war will start and escalate against China the problem will not be when the first nuclear weapon will released, but when the first biological one will be, and then, will not be a problem only for China but the rest of human kind, since the Pandora box will open together with the end of humanity.