Charles R. Smith
Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2006

Reprint Information

Book on Katie Couric Makes Waves White House: We're Not Subject to FOIA FBI Seeks 2 Mysterious Men on Ferry Publisher: Conservatives Do Read As Much As Liberals Romney Shrugs Off Mormon History Film

Navy, Army and Spies

China ended 2005 with a bang. The Chinese effort to dominate the globe militarily and politically hit an all-time high during the final days of December.

Chinese navy admirals got two new Christmas presents from Moscow. Russia turned over a brand new Kilo diesel-electric submarine and a Sovremenny missile destroyer to the Chinese navy during December 2005.

In 2002 China made two orders worth $3.4 billion from the Russian state-owned arms trading company Rosoboronexport. The arms deal included two improved Sovremenny-class missile destroyers and eight Kilo-class submarines.

The Russian Regnum news agency confirmed that the North Shipyard, based in St. Petersburg, delivered a Sovremenny-class destroyer to the Chinese navy on December 28. The warship brings the total to three Sovremenny destroyers in the Chinese navy (People's Liberation Army Navy, or PLAN).

Story Continues Below

The first two destroyers, the Hangzhou (136) and Fuzhou (137), were delivered to China in 1999. The third (138) has yet to be named by the PLAN.

Each Sovremenny warship is armed with eight supersonic 3M82 Moskit sea-skimming missiles, NATO code-name SS-N-22 "Sunburn". According to documents obtained from the U.S. Navy using the Freedom of Information Act, the Sunburn supersonic missile can be armed with a nuclear warhead 10 times the power of the A-bomb used on Hiroshima.

The fourth destroyer (139) remains inside Russia. The warship caught fire in a shipyard accident in April 2005 while still under construction. The fire damaged the destroyer, and its delivery has been postponed.

Eight New Russian Subs

In addition, the PLAN acquired the first Kilo-class submarine from the billion-dollar order in May 2005, and seven of the total eight diesel-class boats were delivered by the end of 2005. The turnover of the last Kilo submarine was reportedly delayed to mid-2006 due to some unknown technical problems.

The Chinese Kilos are armed with the new Russian Club-S sea-skimming cruise missile. Russian missile maker Novator delivered the latest version of its "CLUB" strike missile systems, the 3M-14 land attack cruise missile.

The 3M-14 can be fired from a submerged Kilo submarine. The subsonic missile then flies at very low altitude over water and land to a designated point, where its high-resolution radar guides it to within a few feet of its intended target.

The buildup of Chinese military forces has not gone unnoticed in the region. Taiwan's president, Chen Shui-bian, signaled a shift in relations with China due to the increasing threat of the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

During a recent speech, Chen said the PLA has deployed 784 ballistic missiles targeted at the island and set up a three-stage war plan against Taiwan.

"The PLA aims to establish contingency-response combat capabilities by 2007, build up combat capabilities for large-scale military engagement by 2010 and to ensure victory in a decisive battle by 2015," said Chen.

"In the so-called 'carrot and stick' strategy China has employed against Taiwan, the 'soft tactic' is a mere deception, but the 'hard tactic' is real," Chen said.

"It has unceasingly pursued its ambition to annex Taiwan," stated Chen.

Deadly Honey Pot

Meanwhile, the war of words between Japan and China over a Japanese diplomat's suicide intensified, with Tokyo insisting that Chinese agents helped prompt the death. The Japanese foreign ministry rejected a Chinese statement that the Shanghai-based diplomat killed himself in May 2004 due to job stress.

"In the background of the suicide, we assume that there were regrettable actions taken by local Chinese security personnel, which were against the obligation of the receiving state under the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations," stated the Japanese foreign ministry.

"About the statement on the website of the Chinese Embassy in Japan on December 31 which said 'The Japanese side expressed that the official committed suicide because of heavy pressure of work,' the Japanese side has not expressed such a position."

The rift between Tokyo and Beijing began after a Japanese media outlet reported that the diplomat left a suicide note saying that he had been blackmailed over his relationship with a karaoke club hostess.

According to the Japanese Weekly Bunshun magazine, a Chinese intelligence agency pressed the diplomat to pass Tokyo-bound reports from the then Shanghai-based consul-general Nobuyuki Sugimoto. The Chinese also demanded information on Japanese encryption systems.

Editor's note:
CIA Translation of Secret Chinese Military Manual – Details Here
Is Alan Greenspan Telling the Truth About Inflation? Find Out the Answer Here!
Doctor: Keep Your Heart Healthy! Find Out How