President Joe Biden’s declining mental acuity has become a national security issue and has seemingly emboldened Red China’s willingness to engage in increasingly aggressive behavior.
On Saturday, a U.S. destroyer was abruptly cut off by a Chinese naval vessel during a transit through the Taiwan Strait. According to Fox News, the USS Chung-Hoon — which was conducting a “freedom of navigation” exercise with the Royal Canadian Navy — was forced to “slow down to 10 knots to avoid a collision” with the Chinese vessel. U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said in a statement that the Chinese ship came within 150 yards of the U.S. destroyer and that China’s “actions violated the maritime ‘Rules of the Road’ of safe passage in international waters.”
“The U.S. military flies, sails, and operates safely and responsibly anywhere international law allows,” U.S. military officials said. Paul Mountford, the commander of the Canadian frigate, claimed the Chinese vessel’s maneuver was announced over the radio before it was attempted, “clearly indicat[ing] this was intentional.” Predictably, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) defended the aggressive move by calling it “lawful, safe and professional.”
U.S. Navy releases video showing a Chinese warship cutting across bow of USS Chung-Hoon in Taiwan Strait in “unsafe manner” June 3. pic.twitter.com/kelGl7LG8k
— Lucas Tomlinson (@LucasFoxNews) June 5, 2023
This weekend’s incident marks the latest in a growing list of Chinese maneuvers that appear designed to interfere with U.S. military operations. Two weeks ago, a Chinese fighter jet came within 400 feet of a U.S.
