4 hours ago, daveAustin said:

The only thing the op is worth (China is not militarising South China Sea, Premier Li says) is this: 

China should have been nuked before they got the big guns.

Not nuked, but iron bombs, yes.  China put up missile launch pads (hardened concrete) on the Paracels, which are claimed by Vietnam.  The minute that was known, VN and the US and EU should have notified the Chinese:  DISMANTLE COMPLETELY IN 5 DAYS OR SUFFER DIRE CONSEQUENCES.

 

Same for all other terra-forming development (military and non-military) in that region.  It's like having naughty kids.  If you come down strong initially, the chances of nipping bad behavior in the bud is much better than if you tolerate it for months/years, and then insipidly make a mention.

 

China needs strong medicine now, not two aspirin 6 years from now.

 

Mother nature and her storms, tsunamis and earthquakes aren't really kind to low lying artificial structures.  

 

Especially if they were built wherever there was a reef, with no long term consideration of the forces at play when she gets to playing.

6 hours ago, craigt3365 said:

The Chinese are arrogant.  I think they fully believe the 9 dash line.  Even those who should know better.  And in the end, it's all about money.  From the natural resources there...which they desperately need.

 

Scary thing is, 20 years ago when they didn't have the military might to do anything in the SCS, we never heard anything of the 9 dash line.

 

Just like we don't hear much today about Bangkok being an important trading port for an ancient Chinese dynasty.

 

I'm sensing a redux of the old "Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere", but the roles will be switched around a little bit this time.

 

Edit:  Except for the role of the USA, who seem determined to be the spoilers again.

 

Edited March 25, 20179 yr by impulse

22 minutes ago, impulse said:

Mother nature and her storms, tsunamis and earthquakes aren't really kind to low lying artificial structures.  

 

Especially if they were built wherever there was a reef, with no long term consideration of the forces at play when she gets to playing.

Interesting a dance between Mother Nature and The Devil. 

Posts containing off topic generalizations have been removed as well as the replies. 

1 hour ago, impulse said:

Scary thing is, 20 years ago when they didn't have the military might to do anything in the SCS, we never heard anything of the 9 dash line.

Just like we don't hear much today about Bangkok being an important trading port for an ancient Chinese dynasty.

I'm sensing a redux of the old "Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere", but the roles will be switched around a little bit this time.

Edit:  Except for the role of the USA, who seem determined to be the spoilers again.

                        China are experts at tweaking history to suit their needs. They say Tibet has always been Chinese, but fail to mention that each Chinese emperors, in turn, would travel the long arduous journey to Tibet to pay homage to the sitting Dalai Lama in his Kingdom.

 

              Re; the SCS, Chinese officials spoke with Hainan fishermen and astonishingly, produced an old piece of parchment which has a slight notation re; islands far south of Hainan.  It mentions stopping to rest, or something like that.   No matter that the islands all have farang names - same names used on old Chinese maps which, btw, didn't even pretend that the Spratlys, Scarborough, Paracels, or any other SCS islands were Chinese.   It's only in the recent past that Chinese bosses thought up their own names for the outcrops.