masshooter
Moderator
Along the same vein as "12 hydrogen bombs can ruin your day" thread, here is the latest report on Taiwan's ability to defend herself:
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Friday March 31 1:44 AM ET
Taiwan Seen Vulnerable to Attack - Report
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Taiwan is more vulnerable to attack from China than generally recognized because its isolated military has fallen behind technologically, the Washington Post reported on Friday, citing a new Pentagon report.
The highly classified 40-page report points out problems with the Taiwanese military's ability to defend against aircraft, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles, the Post said, citing a U.S. official familiar with the report.
It concludes that Taiwan's military capability has been weakened by the island's diplomatic isolation, and faults the military for allowing poor security at its bases, for tolerating bitter interservice rivalries, and for failing to develop a professional corps of senior enlisted troops to operate its weapons systems, according to the Post report.
``There is no other military in the world that experiences the kind of isolation Taiwan's does,'' the official told the paper. ``They don't train or have contacts with anyone. And as warfare has become more complex, it has become more difficult for them to handle all these new technologies.''
After pro-independence politician Chen Shui-bian won Taiwan's presidential election earlier this month, Beijing threatened to attack the island if it attempted to secede, although both sides have since toned down their rhetoric.
The U.S. government is wrestling with a decision over whether to sell four sophisticated Aegis destroyers and other advanced military gear to Taiwan, including long-range radar that could look thousands of miles into the Chinese mainland.
The administration is expected to make a decision on the sale by the end of April, when a Taiwanese delegation is scheduled to arrive here to discuss the requested arms.
A senior Chinese official warned earlier this month that a U.S. transfer of high-tech military equipment to Taiwan would be considered a hostile act and would be ``the last straw'' in U.S.-China relations.
In an editorial also published in Friday's Washington Post, Sen. Jesse Helms, who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, accused the Clinton administration of ``kowtowing to the Chinese Communists'' and doing nothing to ``help Taiwan deter Chinese aggression.''
He urged Washington to send a clear signal to Beijing by approving Taiwan's request for defense purchases; including Taiwan in a regional missile-defense strategy; and backing a bill that would allow U.S. military experts to visit and advise Taiwan.
``The United States can help Chen restart the cross-strait dialogue only by allowing Taiwan to engage the mainland on the basis of peace through strength,'' the powerful North Carolina Republican wrote.
The Pentagon report was produced by officers on the staff of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and by officials in the policy formulation office of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Overall, it outlines ``not a very pleasant picture'' of Taiwan's defenses, the Clinton administration official said.
A Pentagon official involved in producing the study said it was a tough job. ``The drafting of this was an extraordinarily difficult process, because it is such an extremely sensitive issue,'' the official told the Post.
A defense official at the Taiwan government office here declined to comment on the report for the Post.
The report is the first in a series of studies of the military balance between Taiwan and China ordered by the Pentagon's policy office. Generally, that office, dominated by civilians, is seen as taking a harder line in favor of Taiwan than does the uniformed U.S. military.
The Post quoted Pentagon spokesman Kenneth Bacon as saying a planned briefing to Taiwanese officials on the report was postponed simply for logistical reasons.
``We always planned to brief the Taiwanese on the contents of the assessment before releasing it to the appropriate people in Congress,'' he told the paper. He declined to discuss the contents of the report, citing its classified nature.
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OK, RANT mode analysis:
I would find this hard to believe, if it were not for the fact that the White House has already been bought by the PLA: "The U.S. government is wrestling with a decision over whether to sell four sophisticated Aegis destroyers and other advanced military gear to Taiwan..." What's to wrestle with?? I would sell 'em 8 for the price of 4!! And throw in some of our serviceable but mothballed equipment for free.
And this really burns my ass: "A senior Chinese official warned earlier this month that a U.S. transfer of high-tech military equipment to Taiwan would be considered a hostile act and would be ``the last straw'' in U.S.-China relations." OH, is that SO? Well, I guess now would be a good time to throw them out of the WTO, and revoke their "Most Favored Nation Trading Status".
Every day, China seems more belligerent towards its neighbor, and the US, they have expressed desire for Pacific Rim "hegemony" (sounds like "control" to me), and they have nuclear missiles they claim can reach the US. Does this only bother me? What if Iraq or Yugoslavia behaved in such a way? We'd bomb the crap out of them-- but wait, aside from individual acts of terrorism, they can't actually strike back.
And take India: Klinton imposes economic sanctions against them because they had the temerity to develop a nuclear bomb to defend themselves from the perceived threat of Pakistan. Now, nobody is for nuclear arms proliferation, but to the best of my knowledge, India never threatened the US or our allies, and is a historical foe of China. Yet China threatens the US with nuclear attack in the unlikely event we grow some balls and defend a sovereign nation, as we are pledged to do by treaty, and what do our leaders do-- petition Congress to extend their "most favored nation trading status"!
Makes me sick.
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Friday March 31 1:44 AM ET
Taiwan Seen Vulnerable to Attack - Report
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Taiwan is more vulnerable to attack from China than generally recognized because its isolated military has fallen behind technologically, the Washington Post reported on Friday, citing a new Pentagon report.
The highly classified 40-page report points out problems with the Taiwanese military's ability to defend against aircraft, ballistic missiles and cruise missiles, the Post said, citing a U.S. official familiar with the report.
It concludes that Taiwan's military capability has been weakened by the island's diplomatic isolation, and faults the military for allowing poor security at its bases, for tolerating bitter interservice rivalries, and for failing to develop a professional corps of senior enlisted troops to operate its weapons systems, according to the Post report.
``There is no other military in the world that experiences the kind of isolation Taiwan's does,'' the official told the paper. ``They don't train or have contacts with anyone. And as warfare has become more complex, it has become more difficult for them to handle all these new technologies.''
After pro-independence politician Chen Shui-bian won Taiwan's presidential election earlier this month, Beijing threatened to attack the island if it attempted to secede, although both sides have since toned down their rhetoric.
The U.S. government is wrestling with a decision over whether to sell four sophisticated Aegis destroyers and other advanced military gear to Taiwan, including long-range radar that could look thousands of miles into the Chinese mainland.
The administration is expected to make a decision on the sale by the end of April, when a Taiwanese delegation is scheduled to arrive here to discuss the requested arms.
A senior Chinese official warned earlier this month that a U.S. transfer of high-tech military equipment to Taiwan would be considered a hostile act and would be ``the last straw'' in U.S.-China relations.
In an editorial also published in Friday's Washington Post, Sen. Jesse Helms, who heads the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, accused the Clinton administration of ``kowtowing to the Chinese Communists'' and doing nothing to ``help Taiwan deter Chinese aggression.''
He urged Washington to send a clear signal to Beijing by approving Taiwan's request for defense purchases; including Taiwan in a regional missile-defense strategy; and backing a bill that would allow U.S. military experts to visit and advise Taiwan.
``The United States can help Chen restart the cross-strait dialogue only by allowing Taiwan to engage the mainland on the basis of peace through strength,'' the powerful North Carolina Republican wrote.
The Pentagon report was produced by officers on the staff of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and by officials in the policy formulation office of the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Overall, it outlines ``not a very pleasant picture'' of Taiwan's defenses, the Clinton administration official said.
A Pentagon official involved in producing the study said it was a tough job. ``The drafting of this was an extraordinarily difficult process, because it is such an extremely sensitive issue,'' the official told the Post.
A defense official at the Taiwan government office here declined to comment on the report for the Post.
The report is the first in a series of studies of the military balance between Taiwan and China ordered by the Pentagon's policy office. Generally, that office, dominated by civilians, is seen as taking a harder line in favor of Taiwan than does the uniformed U.S. military.
The Post quoted Pentagon spokesman Kenneth Bacon as saying a planned briefing to Taiwanese officials on the report was postponed simply for logistical reasons.
``We always planned to brief the Taiwanese on the contents of the assessment before releasing it to the appropriate people in Congress,'' he told the paper. He declined to discuss the contents of the report, citing its classified nature.
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OK, RANT mode analysis:
I would find this hard to believe, if it were not for the fact that the White House has already been bought by the PLA: "The U.S. government is wrestling with a decision over whether to sell four sophisticated Aegis destroyers and other advanced military gear to Taiwan..." What's to wrestle with?? I would sell 'em 8 for the price of 4!! And throw in some of our serviceable but mothballed equipment for free.
And this really burns my ass: "A senior Chinese official warned earlier this month that a U.S. transfer of high-tech military equipment to Taiwan would be considered a hostile act and would be ``the last straw'' in U.S.-China relations." OH, is that SO? Well, I guess now would be a good time to throw them out of the WTO, and revoke their "Most Favored Nation Trading Status".
Every day, China seems more belligerent towards its neighbor, and the US, they have expressed desire for Pacific Rim "hegemony" (sounds like "control" to me), and they have nuclear missiles they claim can reach the US. Does this only bother me? What if Iraq or Yugoslavia behaved in such a way? We'd bomb the crap out of them-- but wait, aside from individual acts of terrorism, they can't actually strike back.
And take India: Klinton imposes economic sanctions against them because they had the temerity to develop a nuclear bomb to defend themselves from the perceived threat of Pakistan. Now, nobody is for nuclear arms proliferation, but to the best of my knowledge, India never threatened the US or our allies, and is a historical foe of China. Yet China threatens the US with nuclear attack in the unlikely event we grow some balls and defend a sovereign nation, as we are pledged to do by treaty, and what do our leaders do-- petition Congress to extend their "most favored nation trading status"!
Makes me sick.