China Fears Admitting Galwan Casualties May Lead To Unrest: Dissident Jianli Yang, a Chinese dissident and son of a former Communist Party leader, said "The CCP leadership cannot afford to undermine the veterans' potential to launch a collective and armed anti-regime action"

Disgruntled Chinese Army cadres may launch an armed conflict, says dissident.

Disgruntled retired and serving Chinese Army cadres, who are hurt by the treatment meted out by the government, can launch an "armed" anti-regime action against Xi Jinping's government, said Jianli Yang, a Chinese dissident and son of a former Communist Party leader.

In an opinion piece in The Washington Post, Jianli Yang, the founder and president of Citizen Power Initiatives for China, writes that Beijing fears that the admitting that it had lost troops, that too more in number than its opponent, could lead to major domestic unrest that can even put the regime of Chinese Communist Party (CCP) at stake.

"The PLA has long been a key pillar of the CCP's power. If the sentiments of the serving PLA cadres are hurt and they get together with the millions of disgruntled veterans (which may be facilitated by those within the PLA who are already unhappy with Xi -- and there are thousands of them, such as those who were hurt by Xi's move to separate PLA from commercial activities), they could form a formidable force capable of challenging Xi's leadership," he writes.

"Significantly, the CCP leadership cannot afford to undermine the veterans' potential to launch a collective and armed anti-regime action. Hence, the continuing incidence of veterans' protests, despite significant coercive pressure and bureaucratic measures, is a source of intense anxiety for Xi Jinping and the CCP leadership," he adds.

Jianli cited the recent example of the recent face-off between Indian and Chinese troops at Galwan Valley, during which both sides suffered casualties.

When asked to confirm the number of casualties China had suffered in the recent clash in the Galwan Valley, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Zhao Lijian did not acknowledge that there were casualties on the Chinese side, saying "I have no information to offer."

Yet again, when the question was posed the next day (June 23), Zhao avoided giving any details from the Chinese side, but was quick to retort that Indian media reports claiming that at least 40 Chinese soldiers were killed was "false information".

"Even a week after the incident, China has refused to publicly admit that there had been casualties on its side, while India paid the last homage to its martyrs with full state honours," Jianli states.

Jianli is of the view that at the root of this fear is the simmering resentment running in the hearts and minds of 57 million veterans of China's PLA.

He explains that veterans are holding frequent mass protests across China hoping to shame the government into recognising its obligation towards those who battled along the country's borders in the past.

"If this is the treatment meted out by the CCP regime to the martyrs of today, imagine the plight of PLA veterans, many of whom had participated in the bloody 1979 Sino-Vietnamese War or the Korean War. They have been holding frequent mass protests across China for years now, hoping to shame the government into recognising its obligation toward those who battled along the country's borders in the past," he says.

Jianli says the country which has the world's largest army, does not have a central agency to administer pensions and other benefits to its veterans. Resultantly, veterans are forced to depend on local governments for pensions, medical care and other basic benefits.

"However, due to wide disparity in the financial standings of the local governments, there is no standard or uniformity in what the veterans receive. After having given their youth and shed blood for the country, the veterans find themselves left by the CCP to the mercy of often corrupt local officials, making them feel like donkeys slaughtered after they are too old to work a grindstone," he adds.

Meet the 5 Best Bombers of All Time. By Robert Farley

Meet the 5 Best Bombers of All Time

Over the last century, nations have invested tremendous resources in bomber aircraft. More often than not, this investment has failed to bear strategic fruit.

Bombers are the essence of strategic airpower. While fighters have often been important to air forces, it was the promise of the heavy bomber than won and kept independence for the United States Air Force and the Royal Air Force. At different points in time, air forces in the United States, United Kingdom, Soviet Union, and Italy have treated bomber design and construction as a virtually all-consuming obsession, setting fighter and attack aviation aside.

However, even the best bombers are effective over only limited timespans. The unlucky state-of-the-art bombers of the early 1930s met disaster when put into service against the pursuit aircraft of the late 1930s. The B-29s that ruled the skies over Japan in 1945 were cut to pieces above North Korea in 1950. The B-36 Peacemaker, obsolete before it was even built, left service in a decade. Most of the early Cold War bombers were expensive failures, eventually to be superseded by ICBMs and submarine-launched ballistic missiles.

States procure bombers, like all weapons, to serve strategic purposes. This list employs the following metrics of evaluation:

· Did the bomber serve the strategic purpose envisioned by its developers?

· Was the bomber a sufficiently flexible platform to perform other missions, and to persist in service?

· How did the bomber compare with its contemporaries in terms of price, capability, and effectiveness?

And with that, the five best bombers of all time:

Handley Page Type O 400

The first strategic bombing raids of World War I were carried out by German zeppelins, enormous lighter than aircraft that could travel at higher altitudes than the interceptors of the day, and deliver payloads against London and other targets. Over time, the capabilities of interceptors and anti-aircraft artillery grew, driving the Zeppelins to other missions. Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, and others began working on bombers capable of delivering heavy loads over long distance, a trail blazed (oddly enough) by the Russian Sikorsky Ilya Muromets.

Even the modest capabilities of the early bombers excited the airpower theorists of the day, who imagined the idea of fleets of bombers striking enemy cities and enemy industry. The Italians developed the Caproni family of bombers, which operated in the service of most Allied countries at one time or another. German Gotha bombers would eventually terrorize London again, catalyzing the Smuts Report and the creation of the world’s first air force.

Faster and capable of carrying more bombs than either the Gotha IVs or the Caproni Ca.3, the Type O 400 had a wingspan nearly as large as the Avro Lancaster. With a maximum speed of 97 miles per hour with a payload of up to 2000 lbs, O 400s were the mainstay of Hugh Trenchard’s Independent Air Force near the end of the war, a unit which struck German airfields and logistics concentration well behind German lines. These raids helped lay the foundation of interwar airpower theory, which (at least in the US and the UK) envisioned self-protecting bombers striking enemy targets en masse.

Roughly 600 Type O bombers were produced during World War I, with the last retiring in 1922. Small numbers served in the Chinese, Australian, and American armed forces.

Junkers Ju 88

The Junkers Ju-88 was one of the most versatile aircraft of World War II. Although it spent most of its career as a medium bomber, it moonlighted as a close attack aircraft, a naval attack aircraft, a reconnaissance plane, and a night fighter. Effective and relatively cheap, the Luftwaffe used the Ju 88 to good effect in most theaters of war, but especially on the Eastern Front and in the Mediterranean.

Designed with dive bomber capability, the Ju 88 served in relatively small numbers in the invasion of Poland, the invasion of Norway, and the Battle of France. The Ju-88 was not well suited to the strategic bombing role into which it was forced during the Battle of Britain, especially in its early variants. It lacked the armament to sufficiently defend itself, and the payload to cause much destruction to British industry and infrastructure. The measure of an excellent bomber, however, goes well beyond its effectiveness at any particular mission. Ju 88s were devastating in Operation Barbarossa, tearing apart Soviet tank formations and destroying much of the Soviet Air Forces on the ground. Later variants were built as or converted into night fighters, attacking Royal Air Force bomber formations on the way to their targets.

In spite of heavy Allied bombing of the German aviation industry, Germany built over 15,000 Ju 88s between 1939 and 1945. They operated in several Axis air forces.

De Havilland Mosquito

The de Havilland Mosquito was a remarkable little aircraft, capable of a wide variety of different missions. Not unlike the Ju 88, the Mosquito operated in bomber, fighter, night fighter, attack, and reconnaissance roles. The RAF was better positioned than the Luftwaffe to utilized the specific qualities of the Mosquito, and avoid forcing it into missions in could not perform.

Relatively lightly armed and constructed entirely of wood, the Mosquito was quite unlike the rest of the RAF bomber fleet. Barely escaping design committee, the Mosquito was regarded as easy to fly, and featured a pressurized cockpit with a high service ceiling. Most of all, however, the Mosquito was fast. With advanced Merlin engines, a Mosquito could outpace the German Bf109 and most other Axis fighters.

Although the bomb load of the Mosquito was limited, its great speed, combined with sophisticated instrumentation, allowed it to deliver ordnance with more precision than most other bombers. During the war, the RAF used Mosquitoes for various precision attacks against high value targets, including German government installations and V weapon launching sites. As pathfinders, Mosquitoes flew point on bomber formations, leading night time bombing raids that might otherwise have missed their targets. Mosquitos also served in a diversionary role, distracting German night fighters from the streams of Halifaxes and Lancasters striking urban areas.

De Havilland produced over 7000 Mosquitoes for the RAF and other allied air forces. Examples persisted in post-war service with countries as varied as Israel, the Republic of China, Yugoslavia, and the Dominican Republic

Avro Lancaster

The workhorse of the RAF in World War II, the Lancaster carried out the greater part of the British portion of the Combined Bomber Offensive (CBO). Led by Arthur Harris, Bomber Command believed that area bombing raids, targeted against German civilians, conducted at night, would destroy German morale and economic capacity and bring the war to a close. Accordingly, the Lancaster was less heavily armed than its American contemporaries, as it depended less on self-defense in order to carry out its mission.

The first Lancasters entered service in 1942. The Lancaster could carry a much heavier bomb load than the B-17 or the B-24, while operating at similar speeds and at a slightly longer range. The Lancaster also enjoyed a payload advantage over the Handley Page Halifax. From 1942 until 1945, the Lancaster would anchor the British half of the CBO, eventually resulting in the destruction of most of urban Germany and the death of several hundred thousand German civilians.

There are reasons to be skeptical of the inclusion of the Lancaster. The Combined Bomber Offensive was a strategic dead-end, serving up expensive four-engine bombers as a feast for smaller, cheaper German fighters. Battles were fought under conditions deeply advantageous to the Germans, as damaged German planes could land, and shot down German pilots rescued and returned to service. Overall, the enormous Western investment in strategic bombing was probably one of the greatest grand strategic miscalculations of the Second World War. Nevertheless, this list needs a bomber from the most identifiable bomber offensive in history, and the Lancaster was the best of the bunch.

Over 7000 Lancasters were built, with the last retiring in the early 1960s after Canadian service as recon and maritime patrol aircraft.

Boeing B-52 Stratofortress

The disastrous experience of B-29 Superfortresses over North Korea in 1950 demonstrated that the United States would require a new strategic bomber, and soon. Unfortunately, the first two generations of bombers chosen by the USAF were almost uniformly duds; the hopeless B-36, the short-legged B-47, the dangerous-to-its-own-pilots B-58, and the obsolete-before-it-flew XB-70. The vast bulk of these bombers quickly went from wastes of taxpayer money to wastes of space at the Boneyard. None of the over 2500 early Cold War bombers ever dropped a bomb in anger.

The exception was the B-52.The BUFF was originally intended for high altitude penetration bombing into the Soviet Union. It replaced the B-36 and the B-47, the former too slow and vulnerable to continue in the nuclear strike mission, and the latter too short-legged to reach the USSR from U.S. bases. Slated for replacement by the B-58 and the B-70, the B-52 survived because it was versatile enough to shift to low altitude penetration after the increasing sophistication of Soviet SAMs made the high altitude mission suicidal.

And this versatility has been the real story of the B-52. The BUFF was first committed to conventional strike missions in service of Operation Arc Light during the Vietnam War. In Operation Linebacker II, the vulnerability of the B-52 to air defenses was made manifest when nine Stratofortresses were lost in the first days of the campaign. But the B-52 persisted. In the Gulf War, B-52s carried out saturation bombing campaigns against the forward positions of the Iraqi Army, softening and demoralizing the Iraqis for the eventual ground campaign. In the War on Terror, the B-52 has acted in a close air support role, delivering precision-guided ordnance against small concentrations of Iraqi and Taliban insurgents.

Most recently, the B-52 showed its diplomatic chops when two BUFFs were dispatched to violate China’s newly declared Air Defense Zone. The BUFF was perfect for this mission; the Chinese could not pretend not to notice two enormous bombers travelling at slow speed through the ADIZ.

742 B-52s were delivered between 1954 and 1963. Seventy-eight remain in service, having undergone multiple upgrades over the decades that promise to extend their lives into the 2030s, or potentially beyond. In a family of short-lived airframes, the B-52 has demonstrated remarkable endurance and longevity.

Conclusion

Over the last century, nations have invested tremendous resources in bomber aircraft. More often than not, this investment has failed to bear strategic fruit. The very best aircraft have been those that could not only conduct their primary mission effectively, but that were also sufficiently flexible to perform other tasks that might be asked of them. Current air forces have, with some exceptions, effectively done away with the distinctions between fighters and bombers, instead relying on multi-role fighter-bombers for both missions. The last big, manned bomber may be the American LRS-B, assuming that project ever gets off the ground.

Honorable Mention

Grumman A-6 Intruder, MQ-1 Predator, Caproni Ca.3, Tupolev Tu-95 “Bear,” Avro Vulcan, Tupolev Tu-22M “Backfire.”

The U.S. Navy Doesn't Operate the Most 'Stealth' Submarines (Think Sweden) By Caleb Larson

Here's What You Need To Remember: Thanks to the high level of thought given to the class’ design, the Blekinge-class could be one of the quietest submarine class ever built once they’re finished. 

Saab’s Gotland-class recently enjoyed a refit, and is very quiet—the U.S. Navy even leased the first of the class, the HMS Gotland for two years in order to evaluate the sub’s capabilities and to improve their own anti-submarine techniques against a peer adversary. The Gotland-class is very stealthy, but pales in comparison to Sweden’s upcoming Blekinge-class, represented by two hulls, the HMS Blekinge and HMS Skåne.

Ghost

Saab’s Ghost stealth technology, which stands for Genuine HOlistic STealth, is Saab’s quietest technology ever—and even quieter than their upgraded Gotland-class submarine. This incredibly low acoustic signature is achieved through a variety of means. The Blekinge-class makes use of rubberized mounts and baffles inside the submarine to reduce noise cause by on-board machinery or crew. Additionally, frames within the sub are filled with “acoustic damping plates” that absorb ambient sound from within the submarine. 

Additionally, Saab claims that all interior surfaces are optimized to minimize noise, including “flexible hoses and compensators; and specifying maximum flow speed in air ducts, minimum bending radius on cables and pipes, and the design of out-board holes and cavities.”

The submarine’s exterior is also optimized for reduced noise. Saab says that the Blekinge-class uses a new hull shape and fin design that reduces hydrodynamic noise caused by water flowing along the hull surface and fins. Amazingly, the sub’s radar cross-section has also been taken into consideration and reduced through a careful mast design.

Air-Independent Power

In addition to above mentioned silencing features, perhaps the most significant is the Blekinge-class’ air-independent power technology. While the Blekinge-class is non-nuclear, it leverages a Stirling engine to remain submerged for longer than would otherwise be possible with conventional diesel generators.

Though complex, the Saab explains how the Stirling engine works, “in a Stirling engine, the necessary heat is produced in a separate combustion chamber and transferred to the engine’s working gas, operating in a completely closed system. The working gas forces the pistons in the engine to move, thus producing mechanical energy.” The Stirling engine is both more efficient, and has a very low acoustic and infrared signature.

It burns a mixture of liquified oxygen and diesel—the same diesel that onboard diesel generators use. These generators are used just for “long distance transit at medium speed in either a surfaced or snorting condition.”

Shocking

Saab says the Blekinge-class is resistant to mines and depth charges for greatly improved survivability. Full-scale shock tests were conducted using depth charges just feet away from the hull—with a full crew aboard—to ensure both onboard electronics and the hull’s resistance to shocks.

Postscript

Thanks to the high level of thought given to the class’ design, the Blekinge-class could be one of the quietest submarine class ever built once they’re finished. 

China Puts Huge Warship at Woody Island Ahead of Naval Exercise

Satellite imagery shows what appears to be an amphibious assault transport ship of the Chinese Navy docked at Woody Island in the South China Sea, June 27, 2020.

China has docked what looks to be a Type 071 warship in service with the People’s Liberation Army Navy at Woody Island, China’s main administrative center and military base in the South China Sea’s Paracel Islands.

The ship will likely be used in in a large-scale naval exercise planned in the area this week. On Saturday, China’s Maritime Safety Administration (MSA) announced a military exercise would take place in the South China Sea from July 1 to 5.

Satellite imagery seen by BenarNews shows a ship fitting the profile of the Type 071 (also called the “Yuzhao-class”) sitting in harbor at Woody Island as of June 27. The ship was not there on June 25.

The Type 071 is a landing platform dock capable of carrying helicopters, a battalion of marines, amphibious vehicles and other cargo for amphibious warfare. It frequently features prominently in military exercises or drills involving the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) and China’s burgeoning Marine Corps (PLANMC).

Woody Island is China’s biggest outpost and military base in the South China Sea, located in the Paracel archipelago in the region’s northern half.

The island is disputed between Vietnam, China, and Taiwan, but occupied by China, which has built a settlement there and formally incorporated the artificial island into a local government district that covers the Paracel Islands and Macclesfield Bank. Macclesfield Bank is claimed by the Philippines.

Woody Island is a frequent stop for the China Coast Guard (CCG) and infamous paramilitary fishing fleets on their way to other parts of the region to assert China’s claim to nearly the entire South China Sea. However, navy warships are rarely seen in Woody’s harbor, and based on BenarNews’ existing satellite imagery, this is the first time the Type 071 has shown up there.

China's military exercise set to take place this week in waters also claimed by Vietnam is nothing unusual, said Greg Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank.

"But this is part a worrying pattern. China’s provocations in the South China Sea have grown more frequent during the global pandemic, and Beijing seems committed to escalate rather than try to calm things down," he told BenarNews.

The docking of China's warship comes after the United States conducted a massive naval exercise with two aircraft carriers in the Philippine Sea on Sunday.

“Dual carrier operations demonstrate our commitment to regional allies, our ability to rapidly mass combat power in the Indo-Pacific, and our readiness to confront all those who challenge international norms that support regional stability,” Rear Adm. George Wikoff said in a press release put out by the U.S. Navy.

The U.S. also conducted a bilateral exercise with Japan last week, and Singapore’s navy conducted training drills with the U.S. and Japan in the South China Sea on June 17 and June 22, respectively.

The deployment of warships to disputed islets and rocks in the region raises concerns over the ongoing militarization of the South China Sea.

Following the 36th ASEAN summit on Friday, Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, who chaired the meeting, emphasized “the importance of non-militarization and self-restraint in the conduct of all activities by claimants and all other states … that could further complicate the situation and escalate tensions in the South China Sea.”

The Type 071 is not alone. Satellite imagery shows what looks to be a KJ-500 maritime surveillance plane sitting on Woody’s airstrip.

A plane that looks like a KJ-500 early warning aircraft sits on the apron of Woody Island’s massive airstrip, June 27, 2020. (PlanetLabs Inc.)

Vessel tracking data and satellite imagery show that a ship in service to the MSA, the Hai Xun (“Sea Patrol”) 1110, is also in Woody’s Island other harbor. Three smaller ships that could belong to either the navy or coast guard are right in front of the Type 071’s bow.

On June 21, China revised a law governing the part of the armed forces that oversees China’s coast guard, instructing it to join in exercises with other branches of the military.

From Australia to India, China’s rifts with major trade partners are a growing economic threat China has disputes or strained ties with 12 of its top 20 export destinations. While countries individually need China more than it needs them, collectively this argument is harder to make. by Neal Kimberley

Workers wearing face masks rope a container ship at a port in Qingdao, Shandong province.

As China’s global footprint evolves, points of difference will arise with other nations. That’s unavoidable, but currently Beijing is getting embroiled in too many economic disputes with major trading partners. These economic disputes could collectively pose a material risk not only to China’s export sector but to the prospects for the Chinese economy as a whole. 

On a country-by-country basis, it could plausibly be argued that other nations need China more than China needs them, but collectively that argument is harder to make. A glance at China’s 

top export destinations

 for goods in 2019, as collated by the International Monetary Fund, illustrates this.

In order of importance, these were the United States, Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea, Vietnam, Germany, India, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Russia, Australia, Mexico, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, Canada and Brazil.

On the plus-side, China’s economic relations with Russia 

are cordial

. Additionally, of those top 20 export partners, China has 

free-trade agreements

 with Australia, Singapore and South Korea. China also has a free-trade agreement with the 10-country Association of Southeast Asian Nations as well as a 

Closer Economic and Partnership Arrangement

 with Hong Kong.

(From left) Singapore’s Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, China’s Prime Minister Li Keqiang, Thailand’s Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha and Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc link hands for a photo during the 22nd Asean-China Summit in Thailand on November 3, 2019. Photo: EPA-EFE

Of course, a free-trade agreement is no guarantee of a harmonious economic relationship, as is apparent in the recent 

deterioration in trade ties

 between Australia and China, a deterioration that has accompanied a marked 

souring

 in broader Beijing-Canberra relations.

China’s exporters sold US$48.1 billion of goods to Australia in 2019, far less than China’s US$418.6 billion of exports to its top market, the US, but still good enough to make Australia the 14th most important destination for Chinese goods. And China does rely on Australia for a lot of raw materials which power the Chinese economy.

China’s economic relations with the US, regardless of this year’s 

“phase one” trade deal

, will remain inextricably linked to a developing strategic rivalry between Beijing and Washington.

It’s quite clear that the relationship between the two largest national economies will remain complex. Last week, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo 

reacted positively

 to a suggestion from Josep Borrell, the foreign policy chief of the European Union, for a formal EU-US dialogue on China.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (left) and European Council President Charles Michel take part in a media conference at the conclusion of an EU-China summit, in video conference format, at the European Council in Brussels on June 22. Photo: AP

In truth, the EU, of which Germany and the Netherlands – China’s sixth and eight most important export partners respectively – are members, won’t fully embrace any US agenda, but Brussels has its own issues with Beijing, not least 

over Hong Kong

.

Indeed, the China-EU relationship is “simultaneously one of the most strategically important and one of the most challenging that we have”, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen 

said

 on June 22, following a 

video summit

 between herself, European Council President Charles Michel and China’s President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Keqiang.

China regards security legislation for Hong Kong as a domestic matter, but the EU disagrees. Indeed, von der Leyen said last week that the European Union had urged China to reconsider the matter and “conveyed that China risks very negative consequences if it goes forward with imposing this law”.

This issue may yet drive a wedge between China and the EU that will adversely affect the economic relationship between the two.

The issue of Hong Kong is also 

muddying relations

 between Beijing and London. Britain is China’s ninth most important export partner. Additionally, China has 

strained economic relations

 with Canada, another top 20 export destination. And then there’s Asia.

While relations between Beijing and Tokyo are always 

sensitive

, Japan is China’s third most important export market for goods. But Japanese policymakers are concerned Japan has become overreliant on China.

“We have become dependent on China,” Japan’s Economy Minister Yasutoshi Nishimura said recently. “We need to make supply chains more robust and diverse, broadening our supply sources and increasing domestic production.”

Taiwan, China’s 10th most important export partner, is also 

looking to encourage

 Taiwanese investments at home rather than in mainland China.

Elsewhere in Asia, the recent China-India 

military clash

 in the Himalayas has prompted calls within India for an economic boycott of China. India is China’s seventh most important export destination.

Meanwhile, Asean member states such as Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines and Vietnam are all among China’s top 20 most important export markets but all have 

marked differences

 with China over contested territorial claims in the South China Sea.

China finds itself embroiled in too many economic disputes with major export partners. If left unaddressed, those disputes collectively may pose a real risk not only to China’s export sector but to China’s overall economic prospects.

US using Taiwan as ‘last card’ may only speed up reunification By Yang Sheng

A Chinese community in Los Angeles calls for reunification and protests Taiwan leader Tsai Ing-wen making a stopover in the US in August 2018.

PLA aircraft could fly over island if US invites Taiwan military for exercise: experts

As the US has been increasingly high-profile in demonstrating its illegal military cooperation with the island of Taiwan such as releasing on Monday rare footage showing joint training exercises between US and Taiwan forces on the island, on the same day, both Chinese and US military aircraft were seen in the airspace near the island of Taiwan. 

Chinese mainland experts noted that US President Donald Trump is probably helping the mainland speed up its reunification with Taiwan. 

Such a move of releasing rare footage on "joint military training" between US military and the island's military provides evidence that it was the US and the separatist authorities on the island that first changed the status quo and provoked the mainland; and if the mainland launches a military operation to reunify with Taiwan some day, the US and Taiwan will bear full responsibility, the experts noted.

"A promotional video featuring joint US-Taiwan military training has surfaced on social media - the first such footage to be seen, as these kinds of operations are usually deemed confidential," taiwannews.com reported on Monday.

Posted on Facebook by the US Army's 1st Special Forces Group, the 44-second video titled "Excellence" shows soldiers from the special forces of the US Army and the island's military "training together in various scenarios including an assault on a fortified position and an evacuation via a Black Hawk helicopter."

The mission is part of the annual joint training sessions which are codenamed "Balance Tamper." An Operational Detachment Alpha (ODA) team from the US Army's special forces was dispatched to Taiwan for this purpose, said the Taiwan-based media outlet. The defense authorities on the island said that it was part of "ordinary military exchanges between the two sides" and that it respected the US Army's decision to release relevant training footage.

Lü Xiang, a research fellow on US studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in Beijing, told the Global Times on Monday that in the past, these kinds of acts also took place occasionally but the US had always kept a low profile, and due to the stable cross-Straits ties in the past, the Chinese mainland also didn't voice too much over it. 

"But this time, it proves that the US might be getting increasingly nervous as it has failed to contain China through its trade war, as well as Xinjiang and Hong Kong affairs. It wants to use its last card -Taiwan." Lü said.

A military expert with a Beijing-based military academy who requested anonymity said as Taiwan defense authorities also confirmed such cooperation with the US, it's clear that the separatist authorities on the island of Taiwan "want to flaunt that the US is backing them, but they also provided us evidence that it was them who broke the status quo first, with US military forces appearing on the island." 

This could even be a crucial reason for the mainland to increase military deployments or even launch military operations against the island of Taiwan, as the US move has already seriously violated the three joint communiqué between China and the US and crossed the redline of anti-secessionism, he noted.  

Wei Dongxu, a Beijing-based military expert, said that "this kind of military cooperation is meaningless to shake the overwhelming advantage that the People's Liberation Army [PLA] had in the region," and even though Taiwan is showing off its military ties with the US, when the mainland decides to reunify the island militarily, any foreign force would be helpless to defend the separatists on the island.

A Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) air force formation conducts island patrols during training on April 26, 2018. The formation was made up of fighters, early warning and surveillance aircraft, and H-6K bombers, which took off from various military airfields. The formation flew over the Miyako Strait and Bashi Channel, completing an island patrol, the subject of the training. Photo: Xinhua

Island flyover

Both Chinese and US military aircraft had been seen in the southwestern airspace of Taiwan again on Monday. Since the beginning of June, the appearances of the two countries' military aircraft are becoming extremely frequent. According to some Taiwan media outlets, US military aircraft have showed up in the airspace surrounding Taiwan for nine consecutive days and the PLA Air Force also sent fighter jets and bombers conducting at least 11 patrol missions around the island in June, according to Taiwan media reports.

Observers noted that this is very unusual in recent years, and as the US is trying more aggressively to expand or even normalize its military presence in the region, the Chinese mainland will surely increase its military presence as well to monitor them and push them out if necessary.

The risk of conflict will rise but since the US, so far, has sent only unarmed reconnaissance aircraft to enter the airspace, the possibility of crossfire in the air remained low, said Wei.

After China's top national legislature proposed national security legislation for Hong Kong in May, the Trump administration knows it has "lost another card" to provoke China and dares not to overly retaliate, so it has started to use its "last card - Taiwan," Lü noted.

But the last card is also the most dangerous one as China has drawn the bottom-line very clearly, and if the Trump administration miscalculates China and thinks using Taiwan to provoke China could be helpful for the November presidential election, the cross-Straits situation could potentially become extremely dangerous in the latter half of this year, Lü said.

Taiwannews.com reported on Saturday that Taiwan's military might be invited to attend the Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) maritime exercises led by the US in August acting in the capacity of an observer.

The Senate Armed Services Committee of the US Congress proposed an invitation to Taiwan in its version of the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act NDAA presented on June 23, said the Taiwan media report.

Lü said that "if the US just invites a few military personnel to observe the RIMPAC it would still be fine but if US warships and Taiwan vessels conducted combat military exercises, that would be a extremely serious situation, and the mainland's retaliation could be greater than the 1995-1996 Taiwan Straits crisis. PLA aircraft could fly over the island."

Observers noted that to some extent, Trump's moves on Taiwan could probably speed up the China's reunification process since if the US crossed the redline China would be able to solve the problem once and for all.