China calls for ‘combat readiness’ after AUKUS submarine purchase

China is feeling the pressure after our sub announcement, and has warned Australia that it has made itself the “target of a nuclear strike”.

China’s leader Xi Jinping has renewed his calls for “combat readiness” as his troll-diplomats label Australia a “threat to regional stability”. Meanwhile, Chinese ships are forcing their way into Japanese and Indonesian waters – again.

“The United States, United Kingdom and Australia’s nuclear submarine co-operation [dubbed AUKUS] has seriously undermined regional peace and stability, intensified the arms race, and undermined international nuclear non-proliferation efforts,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said in response to Thursday’ announcement.

He didn’t address any of the motives why such a deal may have been necessary. He needed to. Beijing’s Coast Guard and the maritime fishing militia was hard at work.

Japan responded to an “extremely serious” breach of its waters around the Senkaku Islands by seven Chinese coast guard vessels. Beijing recently ordered such ships to “open fire” to enforce its arbitrary – and disputed – territorial claims.

Indonesia stepped up patrols around Natuna island in the South China Sea’s southernmost depths as the number of Chinese vessels in the area surged.

And Taiwan pushed its armed forces through its largest and most complex anti-invasion drills yet, even as Chinese combat aircraft continued to probe its defences.

The island known as Senkaku in Japan and Diaoyu in China, in the East China Sea. Picture: STR / various sources / AFP.

Blame game

“As a non-nuclear weapon signatory to the treaty on the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons and a signatory to the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone Treaty, Australia is seeking a nuclear technology with strategic military value,” Mr Zhao accused. “The international community, including neighbouring countries, has reasons to question Australia’s sincerity in abiding by its nuclear non-proliferation commitments.”

While Australia’s nuclear-powered submarines will not be nuclear-armed, the small reactors used to power them do produce weapons-grade uranium as waste. And it’s the ability to produce weapons-grade uranium that is behind the decades-long nonproliferation dispute over Iran’s nuclear program.

And that’s the leverage point Beijing has chosen to target.

“Chinese military experts warned that such a move will potentially make Australia a target of a nuclear strike if a nuclear war breaks out,” declared the Chinse Communist Party-controlled Global Times.

It went on to say promises not to arm the submarines with nuclear weapons didn’t count “because it’s easy for the US to equip Australia with nuclear weapons and submarine-launched ballistic missiles when Australia has the submarines.”

This argument, however, could also be applied to conventional submarines, warships, combat aircraft and even artillery. Nuclear propulsion is not needed to deploy nuclear missiles, bombs or cannon shells.

Diplomat doublespeak

“AUKUS is at the core of the US alliance system to contain China with extreme hostility, and it should not be underestimated,” the Global Times quoted Institute of International Relations Professor Li Haidong as saying.

Meanwhile, India, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Taiwan, South Korea, and Japan have to contend with China’s hostility almost daily.

Beijing’s arbitrarily drawn so-called “Nine-Dash Line” claims vast sections of the South China Sea has its own going against international rules of the sea.

Japan’s Coast Guard says that four of the seven Chinese Coast Guard vessels that entered the Senkaku Islands’ territorial waters were armed. The number was also the largest to do so since 2016.

“We consider this incident extremely serious,” a spokesman said.

The Senkaku Islands are five uninhabited islets positioned some 450km south of Japan’s Okinawa islands. While Japan currently controls them, both Taiwan and China claim them as their own.

The US, UK & Australia announced a new alliance—"#AUKUS"—to target China. They even made a deal to provide nuclear submarines to Australia, with Chinese military experts warning that this move will potentially make Australia the target of a nuclear strike. https://t.co/QVoU5w76ER

— Global Times (@globaltimesnews) September 16, 2021

Beijing has been steadily increasing its presence in the area in recent years. Last year, a record 333 Chinese vessels sustained an almost daily presence.

Indonesia’s Natuna Islands sit outside the Nine Dash Line but even it has been experiencing increasing pressure.

This week, a navy spokesman said five patrol vessels and an aircraft were deployed to enforce territorial integrity after Chinese – and US – ships were seen to be active in the area.

“The Navy’s position on the North Natuna Sea is very firm in protecting national interests within the Indonesian jurisdiction in accordance with national law and international law that have been ratified so that there is no tolerance for any violations in the North Natuna Sea,” Indonesian Navy western fleet commander Arsyad Abdullah told reporters.

He went on to add that both the Chinese and US vessels remained in international waters and created “no disturbance”.

Game of Thrones

Chairman Xi this week made a public tour of a new military ballistic launch site, currently nearing completion.

He again took the opportunity to beat the drums of war.

He “stressed the need of adapting to the new reality in which both frequency and requirements of space launch missions are increasingly higher”, urged the facility to “make greater efforts to optimise” its functionality to “ensure accuracy, reliability and complete success”.

He ordered the space base to “better protect” its strategic assets and “fully strengthen the construction of defence forces”.

Meanwhile, his propaganda arm continued its relentless attacks on all sources of opposition.

“Washington is building a NATO-like alliance in the region, with AUKUS at the core, and the US-Japan and US-South Korea alliances surrounding it, and the Quad at the outermost level, because India, not a US ally, can’t be trusted by the US,” Professor Li accused.

“These small groups of alliances can realise mutual reliance and form a big alliance led by the US to contain China. So the threat and challenge that China is being confronted with are critical and serious.”

But those small groups are nervous for a reason.

“What’s changed is our security environment. That’s summed up in three words: China under Xi,” argues ASPI strategy and national security program director Michael Shoebridge.

“The long-term nature of the AUKUS partnership is the strongest possible statement that the challenge we face from China is equally long-term — no changes of tone or even the shrewdest diplomacy is likely to change Xi’s instinctive path and mindset of struggle. Deterrence by a growing set of powerful nations just might.”

Jamie Seidel is a freelance writer | @JamieSeidel