Taiwan: "No plan to attack Three Gorges Dam" (as Pentagon suggested!)

[Minstrel Boy]

No plan to attack Three Gorges Dam: MND

2004/6/10
The China Post staff

Michael Tsai, deputy minister of defense, denied yesterday Taiwan has any plan to bomb the Three Gorges Dam.

In answer to a Pentagon suggestion that the dam be bombed to deter Beijing from invading Taiwan, Tsai said the Ministry of National defense (MND) has no plan of attacking the reservoir in the upper reaches of the Yangtze river.

At a Legislative Yuan committee meeting, Tsai said the MND is confident the armed forces would be able to cope with the first attack from China.

When attacked, Tsai said, Taiwan will counterattack the Chinese military sector from which the assault starts. "We can effectively do so by aerial bombing, short-range surface-to-air or surface-to-surface missiles," he pointed out.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/i_latestdetail.asp?id=22092

[htuttle]

1. Sounds like just the sort of thing al Queda would do

Destroy a dam and drown millions of innocent civilians? Sure! No sweat, as long as it's okayed by a Presidential directive...

[Minstrel Boy]

2. Military holds live fire drill ahead of China's wargames

2004-06-04 / Agence France-Presse /

Taiwan staged a live fire military drill ahead of large-scale war games to be held by rival China, officials said yesterday.

TV footage showed artillery units firing at mock enemies trying to land on the Penghu islands in the Taiwan Strait.

Arch foe China has repeatedly threatened to invade Taiwan should Taipei's government ever declare formal independence.

...

The exercise came after the Beijing-based New Express Daily said China was gearing up for large-scale military war games aimed at "taking control of the Taiwan Strait", with 18,000 troops and the amphibious landing of tanks.

http://www.etaiwannews.com/Taiwan/2004/06/04/1086316039.htm

The Pentagon recommends Taiwan bomb China's three gorges dam, the Chinese are simulating a wargame to take the Taiwan Strait, Russia is conducting an "unprecedented" deployment of European forces to its Far East, and at least seven of the ten US carrier groups now at sea are heading to the Western Pacific. (http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=104&topic_id=1753441)

We oughta be paying attention.

[mom cat]

12. Holy s*it! Is that why dimson is still smiling?

[bemildred]

3. No, of course not, we just brought it up in case you were worried ... nt

[Sterling]

4. These guys a dreaming.

If war starts they are over. China will crush them and there is not a chance in hell they could destroy that damn.

[Zynx]

5. If Taiwan did this...

China would glass them before the US could even protest.

[Voltaire99]

7. And China holds the economic cards.

China holds so much US debt that it could easily make things very hard for us. If it cashed in those chips, it would be much better able to withstand the resulting economic chaos than us.

[Voltaire99]

6. A very dangerous game is being played

This increasing US-led belligerence is putting the world's safety in jeopardy once more.

[TexasMexican]

8. Wouldnt suprise me its just about the only deterrence Taiwan has...

its not like Taiwan can nuke China in retaliation, yet...

[sofa king]

9. There's that little problem of getting across the Straight of Taiwan.

The People's Liberation Army Navy would have a very difficult time protecting itself against the Taiwanese, and even less of a chance if Japan, South Korea, and the United States were to lend a helping hand.

http://www.hazegray.org/worldnav/china/

[Zynx]

11. Ever hear of Sunburn?

The Chinese bought this lock, stock and barrel from the Russians and have been building a lot of them.

They'll nicely destroy any naval flotilla in the world, including a US carrier group (which is what they were designed to hit-AEGIS can't defend against these things because of their speed and attack proflie). One hit will sink anything in service anywhere Tico-size or smaller.

Sinking the Taiwanese navy isn't the problem, and neither is swatting the Taiwanese Air Force, if the estimates of the numbers of advanced Su-27 marks the Chinese are buying are right. The Su-27 with the AA-"Double Digits" would eat anything in Taiwan's arsenal alive, the best the Taiwanese have is F-16's. The problem for China is landing troops fast enough to overpower the Taiwanese army, with troop barges that are coming under attack from quality artillery, mines and god knows what else. That is what the PLA currently can't do.

[Rex]

10. I guess the Pentagon is bored and wants to speed up hostilities.

They just can't wait for Bush to start World War III. He's moving to slow!

[renegade000]

13. a preemptive taiwanese attack would be suicidal...

eom