China's New J-20 Stealth Fighter: A 'Serious Threat' To U.S., The UK's Line IN The Sand With China

China Rolls Out J-20 Stealth Fighter, Navy Calls "Serious Threat" To US Assets

As tensions mount over the South China Sea shipping corridor which handles $5 trillion in annual trade, China has finally rolled out its Chengdu J-20 stealth fighter jet which some have compared to the United States' F-22 Raptor.  

The new jet is rumored to have already been deployed to the South China Sea along with several of China's Su-35s, to take part in a joint combat patrol over the region, according to the Chinese Ministry of Defense whose release did not mention the J-20.

A spokesman for the People's Liberation Army (PLO), Shen Jinke, said that the J-20 would "help the air force better shoulder the sacred mission of safeguarding national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity," adding that the air force was in the middle of a modernization program in order to fight enemies on all fronts.

While the jet's combat service was announced on Friday, the J-20 was officially entered military service last September - and conducted nine days of drills along with older J-16 and J-10C fighters last month, according to the air force. 

The J-20 was designed for stealth and manoeuvrability and is powered by two jet engines, giving it extra power as well as the ability to survive engine failure, according to the Washington-based Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

The US Naval Institute said the aircraft was likely to be a serious threat to US aircraft, ships and bases, because the PLA might be able to put more of them into the sky. -scmp.com

Senior analyst at the Australia Strategic Policy Institute, Malcom Davis, told Business Insider that the J-20 is a "fundamentally different sort of aircraft than the F-35"

Davis characterized the J-20 as "high-speed, long-range, not quite as stealthy (as US fifth-gen aircraft), but [the Chinese] clearly don't see that as important." According to Davis, the J-20 is "not a fighter, but an interceptor and a strike aircraft" that doesn't seek to contend with US jets in air-to-air battles.

Instead, "the Chinese are recognizing they can attack critical airborne support systems like AWACS (airborne early warning and control systems) and refueling planes so they can't do their job," Davis said. "If you can force the tankers back, then the F-35s and other platforms aren't sufficient because they can't reach their target."

Retired US Air Force Lt. Gen. David Deptula agrees. In a November assessment for Defense & Aerospace Report, Davis said "The J-20, in particular, is different than the F-22 in the context that, if you take a look and analyze the design, it may have some significant low-observable capabilities on the front end, but not all aspects — nor is it built as a dogfighter," adding "But quite frankly, the biggest concern is its design to carry long-range weapons."

The UK's Line In The Sand With China

In a clear case of supoosting America’s position in maintaining freedom of the seas in international waters, the UK has decided to take very decisive action toward China within their own backyard.

British Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson told The Australian

newspaper on Tuesday HMS Sutherland, a Type 23 frigate, will travel through the key trading lane after concluding a visit to Australia.

If Britain went ahead with its plan, it would become what is believed to be only the second country after the United States to assert what it calls freedom of navigation rights in waters, which China controls.

Beijing has, on different occasions, asserted its sovereignty over nearly all of the South China Sea, which serves as a crossing for more $ 5 trillion worth of maritime trade annually. The sea is also claimed in part by the Philippines, Brunei, Vietnam, Malaysia and Taiwan.

The US has accused China of implementing what it calls a land reclamation program in the South China Sea by building artificial islands in the disputed areas.

However, Beijing has maintained that Washington meddles in the regional issues and deliberately stirs up tensions in the contested waters…

Fox News released a report which clearly shows that China is militarizing artificially created Islands in the disputed are of the South China Sea. I wrote about this possibility in previous articles, last year, and concluded that what China is doing is illegal, under international law, and als0 constitutes an act of war.

Previous research indicates that Chinese foreign policy has three main goals at the present moment:

1. China seeks to conquer most of Asia to support its need for the natural resources of industrialization. This will be the primary topic of Part Two of this series. China is experiencing monumental growth in its industrialization efforts. Suffice it to say for now, China needs massive industrialization materials which it does not have. This need to procure the element of industrialization places China in a similar position to pre-World War II Japan which faced the same dilemma. China has attempted to leverage its position by closing the South China Sea to trade as well taking advantage of the Korean conflict to aggressively move on its neighbors if conflict comes to fruition in North Korea.
2. China is clearly using the artificially manufactured North Korean situation as a smokescreen to invite conflict in Korea from which they will take full advantage as evidenced by the fact that the Chinese have moved 300,000 soldiers to their border with North Korea. These troops are not gathered on the border to invade NK, they are there, as tomorrow’s article will posit, to tie up American military forces in Korea in order that China can luanch its  planned imperialistic invasion of its Asian neighbors in order to procure the natural resources needed to maximizing their industrialization efforts.
3. In the event of any Korean conflict, China will immediately move on Taiwan and recapture their “lost province”.  Taiwan knows it could be invaded at any time and they have recently conducted massive military defense drills which rehearsed for this possibility. How do we know of China’s aggressive intentions toward Taiwan, China has already tipped their hand.

The defensive drill conducted by Taiwan was in clear response to China’s drill in which the communist super power rehearsed seizing Taiwan as covered by Reuters in the following press release that largely went uncovered after it was published on December 17, 2017.

China’s air force carried out another round of long-range drills on Monday, flying into the Sea of Japan and prompting South Korean and Japanese jets to scramble, and again around self-ruled Taiwan amid growing tension over China’s assertiveness.

China has in recent months ramped up its long-range air force drills, particularly around Taiwan, claimed by China as its own.

The air force said in a statement that fighter and bomber aircraft flew through the Tsushima Strait that separates South Korea from Japan and into international waters in the Sea of Japan…

This is where this article began. The Chinese, as evidenced by the following map are militarzing the South China Sea while they are simultaneously shutting down these open water trading routes. What China is doing is both illegal and an act of war.

In response, US Army is escalating the situation to another level as they are seriously discussing the possibility of sending mobile artillery units to the region in order to challenge the Chinese threat.

In the event of World War III, it comes as not surprise that China will seize Taiwan. When one keeps this at the forefront of their mind, the actions of the Chinese military makes a great deal of sense.

The UK has drawn a line in the sand with regard to the West’s position on this issue. However, what has been reported in this article, is mostly window dressing. The symbolism of the UK action cannot be overstated.

In actuality, the real issue is much bigger than what is reported here. The real agenda and what likely will happen next will be covered in Part Two.