War With China - Part 1

This is a short post and can only barely cover the main points in the briefest of detail.  Hence, I’ll make a number of statements without backing them up.  Bear in mind that I’ve been studying Chinese military and political writings for a long time and that my conclusion that we’re at war came about only slowly and with great doubt.  That said, I’ll also acknowledge that I’m the farthest thing from an expert on Chinese culture and politics. 

China views the US as a world threat based on America’s historical behavior of imperialism and aggression (China’s view, not mine!).  In no particular order, here are some actions that China views as supporting this position.

• US invasion of the Pacific and seizure of Guam, Wake, etc., using the Spanish-American War as an excuse
• US invasion of N. Korea
• US invasion of N. Viet Nam
• US provocation regarding Taiwan
• US economic domination of the world which allows the US to dictate behavior to other countries
• US military conquests using flimsy excuses (Granada, Panama, Libya, Iraq, Afghanistan, etc.)

In short, China sees the US as all too willing to use its military to further its imperialistic aspirations.  The only way China can ensure its continued survival is to subjugate the US.  Chinese culture does not recognize co-existence as a political solution as we do.  The strongest country will always seize the weaker, given time.  Remember that Chinese history going back thousands of years absolutely supports this belief.  China has been invaded repeatedly and believes that the only long term security is to defeat all other countries.  This is a belief embedded in their cultural psyche.

Of course, all of the above apply not just to the US but to India, Japan, Russia (and all the newly formed Russian states), and all other countries in and around the South China Sea (SCS).

Is fear (meaning the desire for absolute security) the only reason for war?  No.  Natural resources are also a reason.  China lays claim to virtually the entire South China Sea and, in particular, the undersea resources including fishing and ocean bed minerals.  China believes they have an historical claim to every island (most of them just points of rock protruding above the surface) in the SCS (as an example, read up on the Spratleys for more info).  Remember that in addition to the 12 mile territorial limit that goes with ownership of land, there is also a 200 mile Economic Exclusion Zone which gives the owning country exclusive resource rights in the area.  By claiming pieces of rock as inhabitable land, it allows China (in their view) to extend the 200 mile EEZ limit around every “island” in the SCS.  Viewed that way, the Chinese EEZ covers virtually the entire SCS.  Further, China claims that the EEZ gives them territorial rights within the 200 mile limit, meaning that no other country can fly or sail through their EEZ.  This, of course, contradicts international law but is the reason why China routinely harasses our ships and planes.

So, are fear (security) and resources the only reasons for war?  No.  The desire to maintain simple power (meaning political, physical, societal, etc.) is also a reason.  The Chinese government has seen the US wage unceasing war on communism since WWII and views the US as a threat to that power.  The US is continually criticizing China’s civil rights policy, lecturing China on the treatment of its citizens, fomenting revolution via calls for democracy, undermining government control of its citizens by the introduction of technology such as the Internet, attempting to limit China’s trade (particularly, weapons sales), and destabilizing China by recognizing the breakaway state of Taiwan.

All of the above presents fairly compelling evidence for the existence of tension between China and the US but tension is not war.  Are we actually at war?  Well, first it must be understood that China carries the long view of history;  understandable since they’ve been a country for thousands of years and will be for thousands more, in their view.  China views war as the totality of all actions, not just violent ones.  Thus, actions such as economic manipulation, emigration, political maneuvering, etc. are all acts of war.  China has no problem with working slowly over many decades to achieve their ends.  Witness their handling of the Taiwan situation. 

Are there any examples that China is conducting “warfare” with the US?  Yes.  Lots, in fact, if we view them objectively.  I’ll cover them in Part 2 (see, "War With China - Part 2")