US Draws Ire with Dispatch of 'Small Armada' into South China Sea
Critics warn that continued military build-up in East Asia could lead to war between global powers
On Thursday, the United States' globe-spanning military dispatched a "small armada" into the South China Sea, reported the Navy Times, in the latest show of American force in the contested territory since the widely condemned patrol of a Navy destroyer within Chinese waters last October.
"We inhabit a war culture and machine with a vast reach and capacity never seen before," antiwar group United for Peace and Justice wrote on Wednesday as it called for a global refocus on diplomacy instead of military action. The group warned that "the U.S. and China, another nuclear-armed nation, are facing off against each other."
This week's "deployment of thousands of U.S. sailors" was to a region that a top U.S. official has characterized as "increasingly militarized by China," reported the
Washington Post.
"Talking about militarization, if you look into it carefully, the advanced aircraft, warships in and out of the South China Sea, aren't most of them deployed by America?"
Fortune quoted China's National People's Party spokesperson Fu Ying as she responded to the U.S. Navy's actions on Friday.
Ying argued, "America made an important decision, which is deploying over 60% of its navy to the Asia-Pacific region ... [The U.S.] is strengthening military deployments with its alliances in the Asia-Pacific region. If we're talking about militarization, what's this? Isn't it militarization?"
Michael Klare, a professor of Peace and World Security Studies at Hampshire College, warned in The Nation on Thursday, History suggests that such [jostling for geopolitical advantage] tends to create an atmosphere of ever-increasing tension and suspicion, where one provocation too many can lead to crisis, panic, miscalculation, and a resort to arms--exactly the scenario that led to the outbreak of World War I just over 100 years ago."
In a lecture at Harvard in February, Klare made similar points, arguing that the Obama Administration's "China pivot"--its refocusing military resources to contain what it perceives as China's growing hegemony in East Asia, of which its South China Sea deployments is a part-- is "turning the entire Chinese population against the United States and also pushing China closer to Russia...in strategic terms."
Klare characterized an anti-U.S. alliance between the two nations as another step toward war--a particularly sobering possibility considering the nuclear armaments of all countries involved.
"What could be done to prevent that kind of escalation of events that led to WWI?" the professor asked. "That's the way we have to think today. How do we reduce this geopolitical competition, the muscle flexing, and reduce the unintended escalation that would lead to a real war?"
Klare's full lecture can be viewed here:
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. Our Fall Campaign is underway, and we need your help. To power our newsroom through the rest of the year, we need to raise $125,000 by midnight on October 31. So if you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
On Thursday, the United States' globe-spanning military dispatched a "small armada" into the South China Sea, reported the Navy Times, in the latest show of American force in the contested territory since the widely condemned patrol of a Navy destroyer within Chinese waters last October.
"We inhabit a war culture and machine with a vast reach and capacity never seen before," antiwar group United for Peace and Justice wrote on Wednesday as it called for a global refocus on diplomacy instead of military action. The group warned that "the U.S. and China, another nuclear-armed nation, are facing off against each other."
This week's "deployment of thousands of U.S. sailors" was to a region that a top U.S. official has characterized as "increasingly militarized by China," reported the
Washington Post.
"Talking about militarization, if you look into it carefully, the advanced aircraft, warships in and out of the South China Sea, aren't most of them deployed by America?"
Fortune quoted China's National People's Party spokesperson Fu Ying as she responded to the U.S. Navy's actions on Friday.
Ying argued, "America made an important decision, which is deploying over 60% of its navy to the Asia-Pacific region ... [The U.S.] is strengthening military deployments with its alliances in the Asia-Pacific region. If we're talking about militarization, what's this? Isn't it militarization?"
Michael Klare, a professor of Peace and World Security Studies at Hampshire College, warned in The Nation on Thursday, History suggests that such [jostling for geopolitical advantage] tends to create an atmosphere of ever-increasing tension and suspicion, where one provocation too many can lead to crisis, panic, miscalculation, and a resort to arms--exactly the scenario that led to the outbreak of World War I just over 100 years ago."
In a lecture at Harvard in February, Klare made similar points, arguing that the Obama Administration's "China pivot"--its refocusing military resources to contain what it perceives as China's growing hegemony in East Asia, of which its South China Sea deployments is a part-- is "turning the entire Chinese population against the United States and also pushing China closer to Russia...in strategic terms."
Klare characterized an anti-U.S. alliance between the two nations as another step toward war--a particularly sobering possibility considering the nuclear armaments of all countries involved.
"What could be done to prevent that kind of escalation of events that led to WWI?" the professor asked. "That's the way we have to think today. How do we reduce this geopolitical competition, the muscle flexing, and reduce the unintended escalation that would lead to a real war?"
Klare's full lecture can be viewed here:
On Thursday, the United States' globe-spanning military dispatched a "small armada" into the South China Sea, reported the Navy Times, in the latest show of American force in the contested territory since the widely condemned patrol of a Navy destroyer within Chinese waters last October.
"We inhabit a war culture and machine with a vast reach and capacity never seen before," antiwar group United for Peace and Justice wrote on Wednesday as it called for a global refocus on diplomacy instead of military action. The group warned that "the U.S. and China, another nuclear-armed nation, are facing off against each other."
This week's "deployment of thousands of U.S. sailors" was to a region that a top U.S. official has characterized as "increasingly militarized by China," reported the
Washington Post.
"Talking about militarization, if you look into it carefully, the advanced aircraft, warships in and out of the South China Sea, aren't most of them deployed by America?"
Fortune quoted China's National People's Party spokesperson Fu Ying as she responded to the U.S. Navy's actions on Friday.
Ying argued, "America made an important decision, which is deploying over 60% of its navy to the Asia-Pacific region ... [The U.S.] is strengthening military deployments with its alliances in the Asia-Pacific region. If we're talking about militarization, what's this? Isn't it militarization?"
Michael Klare, a professor of Peace and World Security Studies at Hampshire College, warned in The Nation on Thursday, History suggests that such [jostling for geopolitical advantage] tends to create an atmosphere of ever-increasing tension and suspicion, where one provocation too many can lead to crisis, panic, miscalculation, and a resort to arms--exactly the scenario that led to the outbreak of World War I just over 100 years ago."
In a lecture at Harvard in February, Klare made similar points, arguing that the Obama Administration's "China pivot"--its refocusing military resources to contain what it perceives as China's growing hegemony in East Asia, of which its South China Sea deployments is a part-- is "turning the entire Chinese population against the United States and also pushing China closer to Russia...in strategic terms."
Klare characterized an anti-U.S. alliance between the two nations as another step toward war--a particularly sobering possibility considering the nuclear armaments of all countries involved.
"What could be done to prevent that kind of escalation of events that led to WWI?" the professor asked. "That's the way we have to think today. How do we reduce this geopolitical competition, the muscle flexing, and reduce the unintended escalation that would lead to a real war?"
Klare's full lecture can be viewed here: