The Taiwan count down has begun!

[Truman62]

ONLY foolishness around here is you, and your MAGA nutjob friends.

[D2D]

Yes, you are a nutjob as you believe those who have murdered millions will not invade their neighbors!

[D2D]

Why do you believe that?

Explain your reasoning!

Are you even capable of doing that?

Guess not!

[D2D]

 Land forces now control the sea — and that is vital in the Pacific!

"It is likely that we are only at the beginning of a leap in the capability of land-based anti-ship missiles," warns Albert Palazzo of the University of New South Wales.

The US may have the most advanced navy in the world — but as Pentagon officials have openly warned, China’s strategy to counter it has been to load up on land-based anti-ship missiles. Below, Albert Palazzo of the University of New South Wales in Canberra, Australia, warns that the threat will only continue to grow.

There is an old saying, attributed to British Admiral Horatio Nelson, that “a ship’s a fool to fight a fort.” In light of modern weaponry improvements Nelson’s saying is overdue for an update. Now it would be more accurate — if less alliterative — to say that “a ship is a fool to fight a missile defended coast.”

Sea control has always been an essential objective for many countries’ militaries. Without it, a fleet cannot achieve its goals. If an enemy force controls the sea, it can deny a weaker fleet the ability to maneuver and act. Sea control, therefore, is a prerequisite for the attainment of many nations’ war aims. For example, in 1982 Britain first had to establish its fleet in the waters around the Falkland Islands so it could put ashore the land force that retook the islands from Argentina.

For as long as humanity has sailed upon the world’s waters, the fight for sea control has depended on the outcome of battle between ships, or more recently, ships and maritime strike aircraft. This reality
endured from the age of the galley to that of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier. Now land forces, armed with long-range maritime strike missiles supported by sensing and targeting systems, will change how sea control is achieved or denied.

Contemporary anti-ship missiles that are already in service can reach out over the sea for thousands of kilometers and, since their cost is trivial compared to that of a ship, an adversary can afford to use them in large numbers and thus overwhelm a ship’s defenses. The Chinese, for example, guard their maritime approaches with a host of anti-ship missiles including the DF-21D, which is ominously known as the “carrier killer.” Nor are distant fleet bases safe. The Chinese DF-26 missile is nicknamed the “Guam Killer,” and has the range to hold the US military’s infrastructure on that island at risk.

https://breakingdefense.com/2023/08/land-forces-now-control-the-sea-and-that-is-vital-in-the-pacific/

[D2D]

CHILLING ATTACK China’s Apocalypse Now-style video reveals "rehearsals for Taiwan INVASION" with flock of attack choppers & beach assault!

CHINA has released a chilling Apocalypse Now-style propaganda video appearing to show rehearsals for a full scale invasion of Taiwan.

Fighter jets can be seen roaring overhead, a fleet of tanks rumble across dirt roads, and missiles can be seen being fired.

China’s government seems to have learned a lesson from Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine.

Beijing's drills show they want any attack to be well-rehearsed and quick - while Russia remains bogged down in a meatgrinder for the last 18 months.

Away from the conflict in Europe, the eyes of the world are nervously watching the boiling tensions between the two nations in East Asia.

Demonstrating the capabilities of its military, China released the hair-raising propaganda video showing troops preparing for an attack on what appears to be the Taiwan Strait.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/23546054/chinas-rehearsals-taiwan-invasion-assault/

[D2D]

Key Takeaways [LIST=1]

• Republic of China (ROC) Vice President and Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) presidential candidate Lai Ching-te gave an interview with Bloomberg in Taiwan on July 27, which Bloomberg released on August 14. The publication of Lai’s statements in a leading English-language magazine helps him project his message to a wider American audience compared to attacks from the CCP and KMT that aimed to undermine Lai’s legitimacy.
  
• KMT presidential candidate Hou Yu-ih emphasized nuclear energy policy during a press conference to burnish his national security credentials. Hou focused on his energy policy to portray the KMT as a responsible party on national security without having to address his cross-strait policy.
• Typhoon Doksuri made landfall in China on July 28. A CCP directive implemented in November 2022 slowed the PRC’s emergency response to the typhoon, which drew criticism from CCP-affiliated media.

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/china-taiwan-weekly-update-august-18-2023

[D2D]

Taiwan is under threat as China sends fighter jets and warships with nations on the brink of war!

Amid the escalating tensions, Vice President Lai Ching-Te's return to Taiwan from a diplomatic trip to Paraguay, one of Taiwan's South American allies, raised eyebrows.

China's People's Liberation Army (PLA) dispatched a staggering total of 45 warplanes and nine warships near Taiwan's borders over a 24-hour period.

The Ministry of National Defence (MND) confirmed the unsettling development, which unfolded between 6am on Saturday and 6am on Sunday.

A key focus of concern was the audacious crossing of the unofficial median line in the Taiwan Strait by 25 of the warplanes.

The MND unveiled the flight paths of these intruding aircraft, revealing that among them were nine Su-30 fighter jets, four J-11s, and twelve J-10s.

Adding to the gravity of the situation, a Y-9 electronic warfare aircraft and a Z-9 anti-submarine helicopter were detected venturing into the southwestern sector of Taiwan's air defence identification zone (ADIZ).

https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1804165/taiwan-china-war-warplanes-warships

[D2D]

There are unconfirmed rumors that a Chinese nuclear submarine suffered an “accident” in the Taiwan Strait, which separates Taiwan from mainline China.

The chatter comes after Beijing launched military drills around the island in a “stern warning” to Taipei and Washington, Newsweek reported.

Citing online reports, the news outlet said there are claims that one of China’s Type 093, or “Shang-class,” nuclear submarines “had crashed in unknown circumstances at some point in the past few days. Some of the reports claimed the entire crew onboard the vessel had been killed.”


More from Newsweek:

There has been no official confirmation of a Chinese submarine running into difficulty in the contentious strait, and experts have been hesitant to speculate. The topic was not mentioned in a press briefing from China’s Defense Ministry on Tuesday and has not appeared in any state news agencies’ reports.
Officials in Taipei did not confirm the reports. In remarks carried by Taiwanese news outlets on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Taipei’s Defense Ministry said during a regular press briefing that the island’s military and government had not detected any evidence of a submarine crash and could not substantiate the reports.


https://americanwirenews.com/nuclear-submarine-accident-chinese-troops-reportedly-involved/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_093_submarine

A pretext for invasion?

[D2D]

As you can see the depth of the Taiwan Strait is not conducive to submersible operations!

I bet they crashed into the bottom!

[D2D]

Of course, given it was made in China we must include the possibility of failure due to construction defects!

Fortunately, the site is in shallow waters and easily recoverable!

[D2D]

Biden administration approves $500M arms sale to Taiwan as tension with China continues to grow!

China stepped up its military activity in the waters and skies around Taiwan in recent years!

The Biden administration has approved a $500 million arms sale to Taiwan as it ramps up military assistance to the island despite fervent objections from China.

The State Department said Wednesday it had signed off on the sale of infrared search tracking systems along with related equipment for advanced F-16 fighter jets. The sale includes the infrared systems as well as test support and equipment, computer software, and spare parts, it said.

Although the deal is modest in comparison to previous weapons sales, the move is likely to draw fierce criticism from Beijing, which regards self-governing Taiwan as a renegade province and refuses to rule out the use of force to reunify it with the mainland.

https://www.foxnews.com/us/biden-administration-approves-500m-arms-sale-taiwan-tension-china-continues-grow

Too little and far too late!

[D2D]

Key Takeaways

• The Kuomintang (KMT) is facing several internal disputes as the party falls further behind in the presidential election polls.
• The flagship CCP journal Qiushi republished a February article by Xi Jinping on August 15 that emphasized “Chinese-style modernization.” This content of the publication and its reprinting indicates that the party aims to buttress support for spreading its political and economic governance models in formerly colonized countries.
  
• The CCP outlet Red Flag Manuscript published an article on August 14 about the necessity of recapturing the spirit of “revolutionary patriotism” embodied by the Chinese military during the Korean War. The content of the article indicates that creating ideological alignment amongst PLA leadership is becoming increasingly necessary in order to prepare for future wars.

https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/china-taiwan-weekly-update-august-24-2023