CHINA’S MEGA-BASE IN THE SPRATLEYS
Japan-Philippines Mutual Defense
eastwind journals
165
By Bernie Lopez
Permission is granted to re-publish with
credits and notification.
Disclaimer – the views in this article
are the author’s alone.
they wait for me
to stumble and err
so that they can
pounce on me
take their
vengeance and prevail
but the Lord is
with me
my mighty
champion
my enemies will not triumph
they will be put
to shame
and wallow in
confusion forever
Jeremiah 20:10-11
A US naval surveillance plane reports
2,000 acres reclaimed by China in just two years at the Fiery Cross Reef. China
admits this is a military facility, and says if the US stops them, there will
be war. China is working feverishly to put up a mammoth naval base at the core
of the Spratley’s before they are pre-empted.
This is a game changer. China will have
control of the entire South China on a 2,000-kilometer radius once the base is
completed, equipped with the latest missiles, radars, subs, carriers, warplanes,
an airport, and a 300-meter deep-sea port. The facility would make the old US
naval base at Subic and the old air force base at Clark Field combined look
like a backyard operation.
Obama’s dreaded Pivot to Asia will bring a staggering 70% of its naval forces to
the Asia Pacific. The 8 defense locations the US wants on Philippine soil, if
approved by the Supreme Court under the new mutual defense deal called EDCA, implies
1) rapid military escalation on both sides in the next ten years, not to
mention Japan’s participation, 2) the inevitability of a showdown on a large
scale, 3) the Philippines, having the nearest most populated areas, may bear
the brunt of civilian casualties.
The US is helpless to pre-empt the China
mega-base because it cannot afford to go to war over it at this time. All it
can do is sit and watch, make threats, continue daredevil surveillance and
report progress, while improving its arsenals.
Any US-China confrontation in the South
China Sea will essentially be naval – warships, carriers, subs, missiles. The
presence of Chinese troops on a massive scale at at Fiery Cross Reef can be a
critical factor since the US cannot just send troops, as evident in Syria
against the ISIS. Rapid mobilization of troops in strategic reefs and isles can
be critical.
China’s reply to a vastly superior US is
the use of ‘asymmetric weapons’, cheap intelligent missiles against big armor
like carriers. The Philippines can adopt the same asymmetric concept against
China, cheap intelligent missiles against China’s carriers and airports at
Fiery Cross Reef. The problem is, never has the US given allies such powerful
weapons, except perhaps Israel. Another problem is, if the Philippines uses
missiles, China may resort to massive retaliation beyond our imagination. Read
‘PH Needs Missiles not Warships vs China’
–
The Eagle and the Bear are now eyeball
to eyeball in the Spratleys, two giants about to claw and wrestle with each
other. Read Inquirer’s ‘Playing footsy
with the Bear’ –
Japan, which has the capability for
massive defense spending, is a ‘third force’ that may tip the balance. Read Inquirer’s
‘Philippine-Japan Treaty’ =
The optimists say there will be no war
because both sides cannot afford one at this time. True, but for how long? When
an energy crisis or a deep recession occurs, will push come to shove? The
pessimists say World War III is just a matter of time. Certainly, war will
boost economies at the expense of lives. eastwindreplyctr@gmail.com
Lord You are the
wind against my sail
the ocean
against my rudder
in the midst of
storms You calm the seas
in the midst of
droughts You give gentle rain
in You o Lord i
lean on that i may reach my final port
i wander in
darkness awaiting Your dawn
eastwind
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PHOTO
Bernie
BL/ 0 posters not photos
amdg
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