Defense/Military - 30. page

On June 4, a People’s Liberation Army (PLA) helicopter flew inside India’s Arunachal Pradesh and made a landing. It then returned five minutes later. Both China and India claim this region, but it is currently under India’s control.

The Indian government strongly protested the border crossing and stated that, in the upcoming meeting with Xi Jinping, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi would demand an explanation from China’s President Xi.

Xi and Modi then met at the Shanghai Cooperation Organization on June 9. It is not clear whether Modi requested an explanation.

An earlier incident occurred in 2014. While Xi was visiting India and was about to meet Modi to negotiate an investment of $20 billion, the PLA army crossed the China-Indian border and camped on the Indian side. Many people think that Xi’s political opponents in China set up the incident.

Source: DW News, June 5, 2017
http://global.dwnews.com/news/2017-06-05/59818526.html

Major Taiwanese news network Liberty Times Network (LTN) recently reported that, not long ago, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte signed an agreement with China (for their countries) jointly to develop natural resources in the South China Sea. President Duterte revealed to the media that Chinese President Xi Jinping once warned him that China will take the risk of (going to) war if the Philippines decides to use The Hague Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) ruling to drill for oil in the South China Sea. He described how, when he mentioned that the Philippines intended to drill in the South China Sea, Xi responded, “We are friends, and I don’t want to argue with you. We should maintain a good relationship. However, if you are determined to touch this topic then, no matter what, we’ll take the military approach.

Source: LTN, May 19, 2017
http://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/breakingnews/2073086

On April 13, the World Journal published an article citing comments on U.S. action in North Korea. Zhang Liankui, a professor at the Institute of International Strategic Studies of the Central Communist Party School, pointed out that, between now and the end of April, the U.S. is likely to use force to solve the North Korea problem. He listed three situations in which the U.S. might take action: one, North Korea conducts its sixth nuclear test; two, North Korea fires ballistic missiles; three, North Korea has an internal shakeout as a result of the U.S. pressure.

“In the first two situations, since the Carl Vinson aircraft carrier combat group is headed to the Korean peninsula, if North Korea conducts a nuclear test or fires a ballistic missile, Trump will look bad if the U.S. does not take action. The U.S. and South Korea will conduct a joint military exercise with live ammunition until the end of April, so it will be easy to carry out a real military action. After this period, it will not be as easy to re-mobilize the military.”

“Zhang pointed out that the U.S. has long prepared the military. Trump just needs an excuse. If Kim Jong-un misreads the situation and continues taking action, he could trigger a U.S. action to use force.”

April is a “high-risk period” since it has several important dates for North Korea. The next one is April 25th, the Army Day.

Yuan Zongze, Vice President of the China Institute of International Studies, said on April 12, “China does not want to see turmoil in Northeast Asia. Beijing’s bottom line is not to have war or turmoil at its door.”

Source: World Journal, April 13, 2017
http:// www.worldjournal.com/4923019/article-3種情況-美可能對北韓動武/

One of the primary Hong Kong newspapers, Apple Daily, recently reported that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Northern Military Theater lifted its combat readiness level to Level Four. At the same time, part of the troops in the Middle, Eastern, Southern, and Western Theaters also lifted their combat readiness to the same level. The 40th Infantry Brigade from the Southern Theater, the 9th Armored Brigade from the Western Theater, the 3^rd, the 196^th, and the 77^th Motorized Infantry Brigade from the Eastern, Middle, and Northern Theaters, respectively, were required to be prepared to deploy to the North Korean border. If the order is given, they may take four to twelve days to reach their designated positions. The number of troops totaled 25,000. Apple Daily reported based on information that the the China Information Center for Human Rights and Democracy released. A third party has not confirmed the information.

Source: Apple Daily, April 11, 2017
http://hk.apple.nextmedia.com/realtime/china/20170411/56550531