中国が仕掛ける海の「非正規戦」に対抗するには

JAPAN FORWARD OP-ED: Tuned to Perfection — China's Irregular Warfare at Sea

China exploits bureaucratic seams to wage gray-zone warfare. The First Island Chain must counter with cheap, shared intelligence and transparency.

China is sure to be among the keenest students of the Iran conflict. Iran's control of the Strait of Hormuz, even when met by a US counter-blockade, had a powerful impact on the rest of the world. 

Beijing's ultimate goal of taking self-ruled Taiwan rests on controlling the seas around the island, which sit along some of the world's busiest commercial routes.

To that end, China is building dual-use seagoing forces that, even short of war, can strangle Taiwan by cutting off vital lines of commerce and communication. The People's Liberation Army is innovating in irregular warfare. It deploys amphibious fighting vehicles using commercial roll-on/roll-off vehicle carriers. 

Decrepit tankers or cargo ships drag their anchors "accidentally" severing Taiwan's vital submarine communication cables. Most recently, China has massed thousands of civilian fishing vessels organized by its People's Armed Forces Maritime Militia.

But how does China continue to be so successful? Simply put, the PLA's tactics are designed to fit between the bureaucratic seams of government operations, frustrating a rapid whole-of-government response not only in Taiwan but across the First Island Chain.

The link to the full op-ed in JAPAN FORWARD can be found here.

Opinions expressed in the op-ed is the Author’s alone. ingeniSPACE does not take institutional positions on matters of policy.