Couldn't find a good thread off hand, so I figure it would be good to create a broader umbrella to cover the myriad of issues in the East China and South China Seas.

The latest mess:

U.S. Flies B-52s Into China’s Expanded Air Defense Zone
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/27/world/asia/us-flies-b-52s-into-chinas-expanded-air-defense-zone.html

China and Japan (and Taiwan, but no one pays attention to them) have been arguing about ownership of a small set of islands in the East China Sea called the Diaoyu (Chinese) / Senkaku (Japanese). Japan claims that they are part of the Ryukyu island chain (Okinawa) while China claims that they have historical ownership. There have been a series of tit-for-tat provocations over the issue going back years.

However, China escalated it by carving out a large swath of the East China Sea and effectively claimed ownership for them by claiming it as one of their "Air Defense Zones." This new Air Defense Zone not only claims the Diaoyu/Senkaku but also other territories claimed by Taiwan, Japan and South Korea, creating a huge diplomatic uproar.

This brings us to today: the United States has decided to challenge the Chinese claim by flying a pair of unarmed B-52's through the disputed airspace. China did not challenge or intercept them, but it will be interesting to see how they respond.

Personally, this scares me, because the Chinese actions and US response is dramatically bumping up the odds for an accidental incident. Politically, none of the parties are looking for direct conflict, but if you have a fiasco like the P-3 mess a decade ago, it could trigger something bigger and nastier.

11/26/2013 3:00:47 PM

china basically claims historical ownership of all of asia sans japan. Zheng He pretty much did the Columbus thing and set flags down all over, there is evidence that they might own California. who knows. my basic feelings on the islands is: we (USA) had possession after WWII and decided to give the to japan thus they're Japanese. wars reset the property rights and we were king of the mountain.

12/3/2013 9:34:55 PM

We are a long way from this becoming front and center Far East politics - it's still slightly troublesome though.. What we really need is someone to walk a tight rope ( not saber rattle ) therefore I support Obamas continued efforts for a dialogue here.

12/3/2013 10:44:47 PM

dong give me that: "no parties involved want a war therefore we're safe" line. that has never been true in the history of warfare.

wars start when one side thinks it can win or when there is no other way to get what you want.

12/11/2013 1:28:57 PM

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/12/13/chinese-naval-vessel-tries-to-force-us-warship-to-stop-in-international-waters/

12/13/2013 1:55:28 PM

Smath74's article are exactly why this scares me. This increasing overlap and pressure is going to embolden the rank and file to start taking more provocative measures. What would have happened if the USS Cowpens and that Chinese amphibious assault ship collided? What if sailors on either side died or even one of those ships sank? Or some poor 19 year old kid freaked out when it all went down and accidentally switches on a targeting radar, triggering a "kinetic" response? That sort of scenario does no one any good.

[Edited on December 13, 2013 at 3:12 PM. Reason : .]

12/13/2013 3:12:05 PM

This will do amazing things for the Navy's budget. Very cool.

[Edited on December 13, 2013 at 7:22 PM. Reason : Maybe they can even get more of those badass stealth ships.]

12/13/2013 7:21:58 PM