B-52s fly over South and East China seas as Trump ups the ante with Beijing

TWICE in three days, the United States sent its B-52 heavy bombers through the contested South and East China Seas. At the same time — in New York — President Trump was tearing apart his ‘great friendship’ with President Xi.

“He’s a friend of mine,” President Trump said of China’s president-for-life. “He may not be a friend of mine anymore”.

But, he insisted, China “has total respect for Donald Trump and for Donald Trump’s very, very large brain”.

Even as he spoke, his nuclear-capable strategic bombers were enforcing that ‘respect’.

Early in the week, two of the 64-year-old behemoths conducted a long-range training operation which took it through the South China Sea on its way to the Indian Ocean.

Then, in the middle of the week, another two B-52H Stratofortress bombers circled through the disputed East China Sea.

“US Indo-Pacific Command’s Continuous Bomber Presence (CBP) operations have been ongoing since March 2004,” the Pacific Air Command said in a statement. “These missions are consistent with international law and United States’ longstanding and well-known freedom of navigation policies.”

Beijing arbitrarily insists it has the historical right of sovereignty over the two waterways. The South China Sea lies between Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines.

That claim was rejected as unfounded by an international court.

The East China Sea shares boundaries with Korea, Japan and Taiwan.

‘PROVOCATIVE’ PRESENCE
Beijing has reacted angrily to the presence of the big black bombers in an area it claims as its own, calling the flights ‘provocative’.

It said such actions made the US military solely responsible for a recent rise in tension with the People’s Liberation Army.

Defence Ministry spokesman Ren Guoqiang said Beijing objected to the ‘freedom of navigation’ movements of combat aircraft and ships, recent US arms sales to Taiwan and the sanctions imposed over China’s purchase of Russian military equipment.

“As for the provocative action taken by the US military aircraft, we are firmly against it and we will take all necessary means to safeguard our rights and interests,” Ren said.

In June, Beijing warned no military ship or aircraft could scare China away from protectecting its newly-claimed territory after B-52 bombers flew near disputed islands in the South China Sea.

But, in recent years, China has itself been exceedingly provocative.

It has sought to strengthen its claim to the South China Sea by building seven artificial islands on reefs and equipping them with extensive military facilities such as airstrips, radar domes and missile systems. Five other governments claim territory in the oil and gas-rich area through which an estimated $5 trillion in global trade passes annually.

It has since attempted to impose control over the waterway, using its navy to challenge any foreign naval vessel passing through the international shipping lanes.

“The US side is solely to be blamed for the impacts on the China-US military-to-military relationship. We request the US side to take a rational and mature attitude and create favourable conditions for bilateral exchanges and co-operation,” Chinese Defense Minister Wei Fenghe said.

MATTIS ‘UNCONCERNED’
US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis says he isn’t concerned the B-52 bomber flights might raise tensions with Beijing.

“That just goes on. If it was 20 years ago and had they not militarised those features there it would have been just another bomber on its way to Diego Garcia or wherever,” he said. “So there’s nothing out of the ordinary about it.

“We’re just going through one of those periodic points where we’ve got to learn to manage our differences.”

The B-52 flights have become a regular event.

In August, the nuclear-capable bombers flew through the South and East China Seas four times.

But the latest flights come at a time of rising tension between Beijing and Washington.

President Trump’s remarks follow close on the heel of the imposition of heavy new penalty following China’s violation of US sanctions by purchasing new Russian weaponry. This includes the modern Su-35 air-defence fighter and advanced S-400 surface-to-air missile systems.

This is in addition to an escalating trade war sparked by President Trump’s imposition of tariffs over China’s advantageous balance of trade position with the United States.

Beijing has imposed its own tariffs in retaliation, and in response to the weapons sanctions has cancelled a high-level visit to the US by one of its admirals and rejected an application for a US amphibious assault ship to visit a Hong Kong port.

BRITAIN JOINS THE FRAY
Japan’s helicopter Kaga has been joined by a British frigate, HMS Argyll, in the Indian Ocean. Both are headed towards the contested South and East China Seas.

Britain says it plans on having a more frequent presence in the disputed Asian waters, and was taking advantage of opportunities to train with allied navies.

“We have traditional ties with the British navy and we are both close US allies and these drills are an opportunity for us to strengthen co-operation,” a Japanese navy spokesman said.

Along with the Japanese destroyer Inazuma, the three ships have been manouvering close to the crowded sea lanes leading to the narrow Malacca Strait and then into the South China Sea.

It’s not Britain’s first visit this year.

Last month the amphibious assault ship HMS Albion challenged Beijing’s territorial claims in the South China Sea on a visit to Vietnam by sailing close to Chinese bases in the Paracel islands. It was intercepted by a Chinese warship and helicopters, and Beijing warned future transits of the disputed waterway could result in trade sanctions.