To help counter China, U.S. turns to the Coast Guard
“The Coast Guard brings some authorities below the threshold of war,†said Adm. Karl Schultz.
The U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Bertholf arrives in Hong Kong on April 15. (Matthew Masaschi/U.S. Coast Guard)
By Dan Lamothe
April 20
As a U.S. Coast Guard cutter sailed through the East China Sea last month, Chinese vessels shadowed it on the high seas, service officials said. It was a reminder to the Americans of where they were: in a strategic area a couple hundred miles from China’s shores.
The situation underscored the evolving U.S. response to the rise of China and the Coast Guard’s role operating missions typically closer to home. The Coast Guard is increasingly orienting itself toward China, senior officials said, by deploying new cutters, repositioning older ones and dispatching service members to countries such as Vietnam and Sri Lanka to help train those nations’ coast guards.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2019/04/20/help-counter-china-us-turns-coast-guard/?utm_term=.de3649c22be2
