Greedy China, like Nazi Germany claims territories of 23 countries, even though it only has borders with 14

US Pacific Fleet Chief Says Not Hesitate to Launch Nukes at China on Trump’s Orders

The US Pacific Fleet chief said he would obey a hypothetical order to launch a nuclear strike against China if the president chose to give it. Commander of the US Navy’s Pacific Fleet Admiral Scott Swift was speaking at an Australian National University security conference on Thursday, RT reported.

The remarks follow the director of the CIA’s recent assessment that Beijing poses a major threat to the US in the long run. Responding to a question on whether he would initiate a nuclear strike against China at President Donald Trump’s orders “next week,” the admiral bluntly said: “The answer would be: Yes.”

Swift, who has led the Pacific Fleet since 2015, explained: “Every member of the US military has sworn an oath to defend the constitution of the United States against all enemies foreign and domestic and to obey the officers and the president of the United States as commander and chief appointed over us.”

He then struck a conciliatory tone, saying: “This is core to the American democracy and any time you have a military that is moving away from a focus and an allegiance to civilian control, then we really have a significant problem.”

The statement came in the wake of the massive US-Australian biennial exercise Talisman Saber 2017, which involved 36 vessels, including the aircraft carrier USS ‘Ronald Reagan,’ 220 aircraft and 33,000 military personnel.

It also came just a day after CIA Director Mike Pompeo asserted in a rare interview that China is more of a long-term threat to US national security than any other world power, including Russia.

“It’s hard to pick between China, Russia and Iran to be honest with you. I guess if I had to pick one with a nose above the others, I’d probably pick China,” Pompeo told the Washington Free Beacon on Wednesday.

“They have a real economy that they have built, unlike Russia that lives and dies on how many barrels of oil they can pluck out of the ground. And Iran that is similarly very single sector derivative and not to the scale of China population-wise,” the intelligence chief explained.

According to Pompeo, Beijing is willing to become a near-peer opponent to the US.

“I think it’s very clear when they think about their place in the world, they measure their success in placing themselves in the world where they want to be vis-à-vis the United States and not as against anyone else,” he said.

Following Admiral Swift’s comments, Pacific Fleet spokesman Captain Charlie Brown explained that he was referring to the principle of civilian control over the armed forces.

“The admiral was not addressing the premise of the question, he was addressing the principle of civilian authority of the military,” Brown said. “The premise of the question was ridiculous.”

There has been no response from China so far. While remaining major trading partners, the US and China still share several points of contention. The most acute ones involve tensions over the status of the South China Sea, an area crossed by numerous maritime shipping lanes.

Whereas Beijing claims that its sovereignty over key parts of the sea dates back centuries, Washington insists on what it calls freedom of navigation.

To back its stance, the US regularly deploys warships and combat aircraft to contested waters. Beijing frequently protests those missions and deploys its own military assets to counter the projection of US power.

China Territory Claims

The total area of China’s claims on other countries exceeds the size of modern China itself, but Beijing refuses to budge on its claims.

Many are based on unsubstantiated (outside China) and unprecedented “historical precedents” dating back centuries.

And while China only has land borders with 14 countries, it is claiming territory from at least 23 individual nations.

These include Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei, maritime territory which is 1000 kilometres from the closest Chinese soil (well outside the internationally recognised 200 kilometre EEZ).

The following is a list of China’s current claims against other countries, all of which it has made painfully clear it is willing to go to war over:

Afghanistan

Afghan province of Bahdashan (despite treaty of 1963, China still encroaches on Afghan territory).

Bhutan

Bhutanese enclaves in Tibet, namely Cherkip Gompa, Dho, Dungmar, Gesur, Gezon, Itse Gompa, Khochar, Nyanri, Ringung, Sanmar, Tarchen and Zuthulphuk. Also Kula Kangri and mountainous areas to the west of this peak, plus the western Haa District of Bhutan

Brunei

South China Sea especially Spratly Islands

Burma

China claims large areas of Burma on historical precedent (Yuan Dynasty, 1271-1368). There are unspecified border disputes with Burma.

Cambodia

China has, on occasion, claimed parts of Cambodia on historical precedent (Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644)

India

Aksai Chin (part of Jammu and Kashmir), Demchok, Chumar, Kaurik, Shipki Pass, Jadh, and Lapthal Shaksgam Valley, South Tibet (part of India-controlled Arunachal Pradesh), Trans-Karakoram Tract

Indonesia

Parts of the South China Sea.

Japan

Parts of the East China Sea, particularly the Senkaku Islands. Also, on occasion, the Ryukyu Islands, on the grounds that the completely independent Kingdom of Ryukyu was once a vassal state of China. The Kingdom of Ryukyu terminated tributary relations with China in 1874.

Kazakhstan

There are continual unilateral claims by China on Kazakhstan territory, despite new agreements, in China’s favour, signed every few years.

Kyrgyzstan

China claims the majority of Kyrgyzstan on the grounds that it was unfairly forced to cede the territory (which it had formerly conquered) to Russia in the 19th century.

Laos

China claims large areas of Laos on historical precedent (Yuan Dynasty, 1271-1368)

Malaysia

Parts of the South China Sea, particularly the Spratly Islands

Mongolia

China claims all of Mongolia on historical precedent (Yuan Dynasty, 1271-1368). In fact, Mongolia, under Genghis Khan, occupied China.

Nepal

China claims parts of Nepal dating back to the Sino-Nepalese War in 1788-1792. China claims they are part of Tibet, therefore part of China.

North Korea

Baekdu Mountain and Jiandao. China has also on occasion claimed all of North Korea on historical grounds (Yuan Dynasty, 1271-1368).

Pakistan

Territory is still unilaterally claimed by China, despite China signing numerous agreements.

Philippines

Parts of the South China Sea, particularly Scarborough Shoal and the Spratly Islands

Russia

160,000 square kilometres still unilaterally claimed by China, despite China signing numerous agreements.

Singapore

Parts of the South China Sea.

South Korea

Parts of the East China Sea. China has also on occasion claimed all of South Korea on historical grounds (Yuan Dynasty, 1271-1368).

Taiwan

China claims all of Taiwan, but particular disputes are: Macclesfield Bank, Paracel Islands, Scarborough Shoal, Senkaku Islands, parts of the South China Sea and the Spratly Islands.

Tajikistan

China claims parts of Tajikistan on historical precedent (Qing Dynasty, 1644-1912).

Vietnam

China claims large parts of Vietnam on historical precedent (Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644). Also: Macclesfield Bank, Paracel Islands, parts of the South China Sea and the Spratly Islands.

Additionally, China recently taunted Hillary Clinton about claiming territorial rights on Hawaii, and claimed that Chinese sailors had settled peacefully in Australia centuries before European discovery. And let’s not forget the supposed 1418 map that “proves” China discovered the Americas (and the entire world) long before Columbus.