Fear not. We don't believe a war will be goaded betwixt China and the US by the Conspiracy. More likely the greater profit potential for them would be to instigate a war between India and China. Both those 'upstarts' need to be taught a lesson who's really in charge.
Staff Reporter
2012-08-28
2012-08-28
Exercise Cobra Gold, launched by the US and Thailand on Feb. 10. (Photo/Xinhua)
Zhou said that more than half of the US military's exercises were held in East Asia in 2010. In 2011, about 172 drills were launched by the United States in the Asia-Pacific, averaging about one every two days, according to Zhou. This is certainly a way for the US to show its determination to carry out its "Asia Pivot" policy of redeploying its forces to the region.
Exercise Cobra Gold is a clear example of just how rapid the escalation has been. The bilateral military drill was originally launched by the US and Thailand to maintain the Cold War Alliance between two nations. It became a multilateral military exercises after other nations included Singapore, the Philippines, Mongolia, Japan, Indonesia, South Korea and Malaysia began to attend, says Zhou. By pulling the United States into engagement in the Asia-Pacific, countries like Vietnam and the Philippines will gain a greater voice in stressing their territorial claims in the South China Sea.
Hanoi has a common goal with Washington to contain the influence of China in Southeast Asia, Zhou says, and thus it not completely unexpected when the US was able to conduct a joint naval exercise with its former enemy in 2010 for the first time since the end of the Vietnam War. A five-day joint naval exercise was again held in April between the US and Vietnam.
The US is sending a very strong signal to China that it is returning to Asia through controlling the Strait of Malacca, Zhou believes.
Even though the US has not conducted many drills with the Philippines, American military support to Manila increased after the clash earlier this year between Chinese and Philippine vessels over the disputed Scarborough Shoal.
Dai Xu from the PLA Air Force stated that the US is trying to surround China again by launching military exercises with its allies spanning the seas of East Asia.
Yet there are still major challenges for the US in forming strong alliances with Asian countries. While anti-American sentiment is still strong among the public in Vietnam, a reliable alliance between two former enemies is still tentative at best.
India is a potential ally for the United States to contain China in the South Asia arena, but this may anger Pakistan, another important ally of the US in its "War on Terror." Most joint exercises conducted by the US and India today are for humanitarian operations, according to Zhou.
The long-standing hostility between India and Pakistan — also a key ally of China — has caused major problems for American strategy in the Indian Ocean.
References:
Zhou Chenming 周晨鳴
Dai Xu 戴旭
Source>>US surrounding China with military exercises: Chinese analyst
