Cold War II: Chinese sub interferes with U.S. destroyer

An incident between a Chinese submarine and American destroyer in the Philippines this weekend reiterates the fact that China is attempting to expand its sphere of influence to the rest of Asia.

by Michael Naragon

On Saturday, the destroyer USS John S. McCain, named for the father and grandfather of Arizona Senator John McCain, was involved in an incident with an as-yet unnamed Chinese sub.  According to reports, the Chinese vessel ran into the towed sonar array of the American ship, and the ships did not make contact.

Officially, the U.S. Navy is not claiming that the sub was harassing the McCain, but it is just the latest in a line of incidents involving the Chinese and U.S. navies.

In November of 2007, an American battle group featuring the aircraft carrier USS Kitty Hawk was shadowed by a Chinese submarine and accompanying destroyer off the coast of Taiwan.  The carrier strike group was heading to Hong Kong to celebrate Thanksgiving, but the Chinese government denied the group access without giving reason.

As the Kitty Hawk‘s group turned around and headed back to Japan, they were followed by the Chinese ships in the Taiwan Strait.  The U.S. vessels eventually came to a stop and prepared for battle.  The tension ended without incident, and the American ships resumed course for Japan.

The Kitty Hawk‘s suspicion of Chinese naval activity resulted partially from another incident in 2006 in which a Chinese submarine approached the carrier strike group undetected, then surfaced within firing range.

China has expressed “grave concern” to the U.S. over the Kitty Hawk‘s movement through the Taiwan Strait and has threatened war against Taiwan if it makes any move toward independence.

Admiral Timothy Keating, of the U.S. Pacific Command, said in January of 2008 that the Navy would not be intimidated from sailing through the Strait, which is in international waters.  ”We don’t need China’s permission to go through the Taiwan Strait,” Keating said. ”We will exercise our free right of passage whenever and wherever we choose.”

On March 8, 2009, the USNS Impeccable, a survey ship, was involved in an incident with Chinese fishing ships 75 miles south of China’s Yulin naval base on Hainan Island.  The Impeccable is a sonar surveillance ship capable of tracking Chinese submarines at Yulin, and the fishing boats positioned themselves in the path of the U.S. vessel.  Beijing insisted that the Americans were illegally monitoring in their “economic zone.”  The U.S. asserted its right to operate in international waters.

The confrontation prompted the U.S. to send a destroyer escort to the region, and also prompted strategists to pay even more careful attention to Chinese designs in the area.  A Bloomberg News story in late March highlighted the heightened tensions.

“China is looking to expand” its sphere of influence towards Guam and to the Philippines, says Tai Ming Cheung, a senior fellow at the University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation in La Jolla, California. “The maritime arena is one of the most fluid and strategic for China in terms of how it’s going to defend and expand and protect its interests internationally.”

How will Barack Obama deal with such an expansion?  His attitude in world affairs thus far has been one of pacifism and apology for the “cowboy diplomacy” of George W. Bush.  Chinese naval activity in the region threatens not only the American Navy, but also the Philippines, Japan, and even other Communist-controlled countries, such as Vietnam and North Korea, who are reportedly not pleased with China’s attempts at control.

The Navy has asserted its desire to continue its normal routine of monitoring the Chinese and maintaining a presence in the region.  With the administration desperate to pass more and more spending, however, Obama will become even more financially dependent on the Chinese.  Sources estimate that the Obama administration will need to borrow at least $4 trillion over the next five years, and this estimate does not include the costs of nationalized health care or the effects of a cap-and-trade law.

Hillary Clinton was dispatched in February to cheerlead the Chinese into buying more U.S. debt.  Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner traveled to China in June to convince the Chinese that their investments in America would be stable.

“The world is going through an exceptionally challenging period now, and I think the world has a huge stake in our two countries working closely together to lay a foundation for recovery,” Geithner told Beijing.  Geithner was also laughed at by a group of Chinese students when he tried to convince them the U.S. dollar was still strong.

In such an economic climate, when our government is so beholden to the Communist Chinese, how long will it be before the Chinese begin to call in favors?  How long will it be before the U.S. Navy receives orders from the Apologizer-in-Chief to cease and desist activity in the Taiwan Strait? the South China Sea? the Pacific Ocean?

While the Chinese build their strength, we continue to surrender ours with each dollar borrowed.