Admiral ‘Perplexed’ by Snub at Hong Kong
It was just last week that the Chief commented that in his humble opinion that the US Navy’s top brass was being taken for a ride by their ChiCom counterparts, who effectively were playing them for a bunch of chumps. After this incident, there are signs that this is starting to penetrate their awareness.
The top U.S. military commander in the Pacific said he’s “perplexed and concerned” by China’s last-minute decision to deny a U.S. aircraft carrier entry to Hong Kong for a previously scheduled port visit. The USS Kitty Hawk and its escort ships were due to dock there for a four-day visit Wednesday until they were refused access. Hundreds of family members had flown to Hong Kong to spend Thanksgiving with their sailors.
Nice slap in the chops from our ChiCom “friends”. Commenting further, CinCPAC noted:
“It’s hard to put any kind of positive spin on this,” Adm. Timothy Keating told The Associated Press in a telephone interview Thursday…
Gosh Admiral, d’ya think so? Can you remember something about the ChiComs – Chinese COMMUNISTS – maybe not REALLY having the interest of the world’s leading capitalist power at heart? (Hmmmmmm. Think. Think. THe clue’s right there on the edge of awareness….)
It’s even better that it’s part of a pattern:
It was the second time in a week that China refused to let U.S. Navy ships into the port. Two U.S. minesweepers seeking to refuel and shelter from bad weather in the South China Sea had asked for permission to enter Hong Kong three or four days before the Kitty Hawk. Those ships were denied, Keating said.
And all this unfriendliness came after we extracted our own spinal columns in our effort to be pals and play nice with the ChiComs:
The developments come as the U.S. military has been trying to bolster ties with the Chinese military to prevent misunderstandings and the potential for miscalculation.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates visited Beijing earlier this month and high-level commanders have traveled back and forth between the two Pacific powers. Chinese warships visited U.S. naval bases in Pearl Harbor and San Diego last year, and the two navies have since held basic search-and- rescue exercises together.
Asked if the refusal to let the Kitty Hawk into Hong Kong would hurt the U.S.-China military relationship, Keating said: “We’ll keep working it of course, but it is difficult for me to characterize this in a positive light.”
DUH!
It’s an ill wind indeed that blows no good…and at least now there MAY be an inkling of what we are really up against with what is shaping up to be a significant Communist superpower.