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Comments on other issues: China defends intercepting US plane
Aug
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strong>Aug. 24, Online/AP
China's Defense Ministry rejected US accusations that a Chinese fighter jet's intercept of a US Navy surveillance aircraft off the southern Chinese coast was dangerous, and blamed Washington for mounting large-scale and frequent close-in reconnaissance operations.
Your comments:
Let's see some resolute action by the US. It's starting to look pretty timid in the face of Chinese provocation. I know US President Barack Obama is keen to avoid military action again after the Middle East, i.e. Iraq, Afghanistan, etc., but there must be a lot of Yanks wondering about their national pride.
Zebra
If the US planes had had fighter escorts, the game would have played out quite differently. China plane rolls to show it is armed. It would be considered an aggressive maneuver. End of Chinese plane.
X Simaging
The incident occurred on Tuesday in the South China Sea about 217 kilometers east of the Chinese island of Hainan. The US claims it occurred in international airspace but the Chinese claim that the area is part of China's territory. It's just another incident where lately there have been hundreds of incidents involving disputes about territory in the South China Sea.
Hainan Island is home to the People's Liberation Army Navy Hainan Submarine Base and strategic nuclear submarine naval harbor. The naval harbor is estimated to be 18 meters high, built into hillsides around a military base. The caverns are capable of hiding up to 20 nuclear submarines from spy satellites. The harbor houses nuclear ballistic missile submarines and is large enough to accommodate aircraft carriers.
The US would have a military interest in flying a Navy P-8 Poseidon aircraft near that naval harbor to gather intelligence, and China would have a military interest in keeping any such type of aircraft well away, so no wonder this incident happened. The US plane provoked the incident by getting too close for China's comfort, so the Chinese acted. Keep in mind that China has also been gathering intelligence on the US and other nations and where they acted.
Eddy Saf
