High stakes on the high seas as US, China test limits of military powerThe guided-missile destroyer USS Higgins (DDG-76) slipped quietly into the contested waters near Scarborough Shoal on the morning of Aug.13. As it pressed toward the edge of China’s declared "territorial sea," shadowing vessels from the People’s Liberation Army Navy locked onto its wake. Beijing wasted no time issuing a formal rebuke, saying it had monitored, warned and "expelled" the U.S. warship for violating Chinese sovereignty.
Washington’s response was equally terse: the U.S. Navy insisted that Higgins’ passage — part of a freedom-of-navigation operation — was fully consistent with international law, and that China’s assertions to the contrary were "false."
In the heart of the Indo-Pacific, the encounter was a revealing snapshot of the new front line in global naval power — controlling sea lanes, projecting force and leveraging alliances.
"There is no clear winning position," said Brent Sadler, a retired Navy submariner and senior fellow for naval warfare at the Heritage Foundation. "The way we fight is very different — you can’t just look at the number of ships or munitions and say one side is better. That’s not how naval warfare works.".................
But at first glance, the balance of naval power still favors the United States. The Navy operates globally, with nuclear-powered carriers and unmatched experience sustaining operations far from home. China’s navy has only recently begun to push beyond its near seas.
Sadler said Beijing’s military posture has grown increasingly assertive. "Judging by how confident they act around us at sea and in the air, I think they believe they could go and win," he said. "A lot of them would die, but that’s not the point — victory for the Communist Party is taking Taiwan, whatever the cost."..............
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/high-stakes-high-seas-us-china-test-limits-military-power
