The People’s Republic of China’s government is in a tizzy because some international airlines, on their flight schedules, still don’t refer to “Taiwan” as a part of the PRC. And, like José Jiménez, they don’t want to talk about it.
China has rebuffed a US request for talks about China’s demand for international airlines to start referring to Taiwan as part of China[.]
There’s nothing to discuss, and we shouldn’t be trying.
The Republic of China is a sovereign and independent nation.
Full stop.
The People’s Republic of China did this to our aircraft in Africa, too. And, yes, it’s the PRC. No one else, save us and possibly Russia, have this capability. Russia isn’t in the East China Sea.
Lasers have targeted pilots of American military aircraft operating over the western Pacific Ocean more than 20 times in recent months….
…
Officials said all of the incidents occurred in and around the East China Sea, typically where the Chinese military or other Chinese civilians operate. The laser signals directed at American aircraft appeared to be coming from fishing boats operating in the area and from shore….
Fishing boats. Sure.
This is the PLA conducting OT&E against our pilots as it tests a range of laser powers for operational utility. The laser sites and ships doing the shooting need to be destroyed in prompt self-defense response. Gussy it up with excuses and denials as the PRC would like to do, these are overt attacks.
President Donald Trump often decries Europe’s NATO nations for their lack of seriousness about their defense, and he zealously insists that they honor their commitment to spend 2% of their national GDP on defense. It’s arguable that Trump could ease off (a little bit) and acknowledge the progress he’s made in getting Europe’s NATO members to boost their spending.
But only a little bit because those nations don’t appear to be stepping up in any serious way, as these numbers from a recent Wall Street Journal op-ed demonstrate.
Overall inflation-adjusted military spending by every NATO member excluding America grew 1.8% in 2015, 3.1% in 2016, and 4.8% last year.
These are tokens, not real increases. A nation committing 1% of its GDP to defense that then increases its defense spending by these per centages will end up committing 1.11% of its GDP. There’s nothing serious about that.
Germany’s defense spending increase? The WSJ says that nation currently is spending 1.2% of its GDP on its defense, and it has plans for a 6% increase in next year’s budget. Increasing that 1.2% by 6% would take it all the way up to 1.27%.
Be still, my heart.
Norway is asking us to double the number of troops we have stationed there and to move them closer to its border with Russia. It’s a pittance—700 Marines vs the 330 we have there now—but we need to work with Norway very seriously to figure out how to do this.
Norway said the invitation was about NATO training and improving winter fighting capability.
“Allies get better at training together,” Defense Minister Frank Bakke-Jensen told reporters.
Yewbetcha. And joint training is especially important in the face of demonstrated Russian aggression and its stationing of nuclear weapons in Kaliningrad.
The members of the Group of Seven, just met in Canada last week, were invited to form a tariff-free trade zone by President Donald Trump.
no tariffs, no barriers…and no subsidies.
International trade doesn’t get much freer than that.
Will anyone in the G-7 have the courage to take Trump up on his offer—or to call his bluff, if that’s what they think it is?
Anyone? Beuller?