Article Image

IPFS

China Won't Be Bullied Says Defense Chief

Written by Subject: China

China Won't Be Bullied Says Defense Chief

by Stephen Lendman (stephenlendman.org - Home - Stephen Lendman)

The only language both extremist right wings of the US war party understand is toughness, diplomatic outreach a waste of time, a lesson proved time and again.

China and Iran understand. They act accordingly, not Russia, calling the US a "partner," a harebrained, defeatist policy showing weakness, not strength, Washington taking full advantage. 

It's been this way for over 100 years with rare exceptions along the way, clearly not today with practically the entire Congress, hardliners infesting the Trump regime, and virtually all establishment media militantly hostile to Russia's interests — with no prospect whatever for improving things. Believing otherwise is foolhardy.

Moscow shows weakness by not responding to US bullying with toughness, how China deals with its unacceptable actions.

Trump regime pressure on Beijing to bend to its will on economic, financial, trade, and military issues hasn't worked and won't ahead. 

Its ruling authorities could teach their Russian counterparts a thing or two on how to deal effectively with unacceptable US pressure, bullying and threats.

China seeks cooperative relations with other countries, using a carrot approach, not a mean-spirited stick the way the US operates.

Beijing's ruling authorities won't yield to unacceptable demands, not from the US, its imperial partners, or any other countries, a reality Trump regime hardliners fail to understand.

In time they will the hard way if continue their hostile actions. Addressing the Shangri-La Dialogue on Sunday, China's Defense Minister Wei Fenghe warned about what he called "external forces" hostile to Beijing's interests. 

He referred to the US without naming the country, adding Beijing won't relinquish a "single inch" of its territory, referring to Taiwan and its South China Sea territorial waters.

Nor is Beijing revanchist, Wei stressed. It has no aim to "seize anything from others," adding: "The PLA (People's Liberation Army) has no intention to cause anybody trouble, but it is not afraid to face troubles." 

"Should anyone risk crossing the bottom line, the PLA will resolutely take action and defeat all invading enemies."

"I have a message for (Taiwan's) DPP (Democratic Progressive Party). First, no attempt to split China shall succeed. Second, foreign intervention in the Taiwan question is doomed to fail" - referring to the US.

Beijing considers the island state a breakaway province, reunification inevitable, by force if "democratic consultations" fail to "reach transitional arrangements for the peaceful development of cross-strait ties," according to Xi Jinping earlier, adding:

"Chinese don't fight Chinese," at the same time saying his government "makes no promise to renounce the use of force and reserves the option of taking all necessary means" for reunification, stressing no tolerance for "foreign intervention."

"(O)ne country, two systems" is the way forward, he said, the approach adopted in reunification with Hong Kong and Macau.

Xi's remarks followed enactment of the US Asia Reassurance Initiative Act (ARIA) — authorizing funding for Washington's imperial Indo/Pacific agenda, mainly by its military footprint in a part of the world not its own, the way it operates globally.

Xi's remarks warned against foreign (meaning US) attempts to obstruct Taiwan's reunification with the mainland. He's prepared to do what he believes necessary to achieve this objective.

Wei Fenghe stressed China's resolve in his Sunday address, saying "underestimati(ng) (its) will is extremely dangerous," adding: 

"We will strive for the prospects of peaceful reunification with the utmost sincerity and greatest efforts, but we make no promise to renounce the use of force."

"If anyone dares to split Taiwan from China, the Chinese military has no choice but to fight at all costs for national unity."

"Safeguarding national unity is a sacred duty of the PLA. If the PLA cannot safeguard the unity of our motherland, what do we need it for?"

Wei's address came at a time of heightened Sino/US tensions over failed trade talks with Trump regime hardliners and Washington's aim to increase its military footprint in the Indo/Pacific region where it doesn't belong.

"If Taiwan joins the (Trump regime's new) Indo-Pacific Strategy (introduced days earlier), that means it will move one more step towards independence," said Wei, adding:

"And if the US goes further in challenging Beijing's bottom line – as the Taiwan issue is a core interest for China – it is very dangerous, and the PLA will respond."

"As for the recent trade friction started by the US, if the US wants to talk (in the spirit of mutual cooperation and compromise), we will keep the door open. If they want a fight, we will fight until the end."

As for development of South China Sea man-made islands and deployment of military equipment to defend them, Wei called this action Beijing's "legitimate right" in its sovereign territory.

China seeks cooperative relations with the US, regional countries, and all others. At the same time, it won't bend to unacceptable demands, nor will it back off from defending its territory and sovereign rights.

If Trump regime hardliners intend testing Beijing's resolve, they may learn the hard way what it's all about.

Unlike Russia, it won't tolerate unacceptable pressure, bullying, threats, and/or intimidation. It can and likely will respond to unacceptable US actions with as much toughness as necessary to get its attention.

VISIT MY NEW WEB SITE: stephenlendman.org (Home - Stephen Lendman). Contact at lendmanstephen@sbcglobal.net.

My newest book as editor and contributor is titled "Flashpoint in Ukraine: How the US Drive for Hegemony Risks WW III."

http://www.claritypress.com/LendmanIII.html

midfest.info