China threatens 'nuclear option' of dollar sales

[raptor10]

China is warning that it may liquidate its 1.33 trillion dollars of American assets if we try to pressure them into a yuan revaluation.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/08/07/bcnchina107a.xml

 

[VetteMuscle427]

Hummmm might be good to hold off on getting that house....

 

[blur]

Then who will be buying their cheap craptastic goods? Not to say they won't/couldn't do this, but they'd be screwing themselves at the same time.

 

[raptor10]

That's why it is considered their "Nuclear" option, economic Mutually Assured Destruction.

It's important to know what capabilities they have and to match it with their intent.

 

[BarrettRC8]

Makes you question the intelligence behind Clinton's policy of engagement regarding China now, doesn't it?

 

[plc67]

I just spent 30 days flying freight in and out of PRC and didn't find the Chinese particularly friendly. Namely a guard at the base of the stairs everywhere we flew(Bejiing,Xiamen,Qingdao,and Dailan) except Hong Kong. There definitely was no base liberty,especially at Dailan. Be prepared for an emphatic No! when you make your initial request, unless it's in flawless Chinese. I'm closer to being a bartender than a scholar but it seems to me the Chinese want in the international economy in a big way, however, as I told my crew to keep in mind we're here because they need us, not because they want us. I doubt if the Chinese would scuttle the US dollar but there can't be much doubt they don't like more than one hand on the tiller.

 

[Brett327]

Makes you question the intelligence behind Clinton's policy of engagement regarding China now, doesn't it?

Really? How is that? "Engagement" with China wasn't Clinton's idea. I'd go back to Nixon if I were you. Bottom line, this is not news and China isn't threatening anyone. We have a mutually beneficial economic relationship that will, for the foreseeable future, trump all else.

Brett

 

[raptor10]

Really? How is that? "Engagement" with China wasn't Clinton's idea. I'd go back to Nixon if I were you. Bottom line, this is not news and China isn't threatening anyone. We have a mutually beneficial economic relationship that will, for the foreseeable future, trump all else.

Brett

I disagree with where you say that this is not news, they are publicly threatening us with economic collapse, not to say that they will do it, but it is a huge indicator of China's position wrt the US.

In the context of titan rain, China's escalating military budget, and China's satellite killing weapons, China seems to be saying (very loudly) that they are willing and capable of competing economically, militarily, and technologically, with the US.

When it comes to warfare, the Chinese wrote the book...

 

[flysupertomcat]

I just spent 30 days flying freight in and out of PRC and didn't find the Chinese particularly friendly. Namely a guard at the base of the stairs everywhere we flew(Bejiing,Xiamen,Qingdao,and Dailan) except Hong Kong. There definitely was no base liberty,especially at Dailan. Be prepared for an emphatic No! when you make your initial request, unless it's in flawless Chinese. I'm closer to being a bartender than a scholar but it seems to me the Chinese want in the international economy in a big way, however, as I told my crew to keep in mind we're here because they need us, not because they want us. I doubt if the Chinese would scuttle the US dollar but there can't be much doubt they don't like more than one hand on the tiller.

You were flying a cargo plane out of Hong Kong? :icon_tong (sorry, I couldn't help myself)

Carry on.

 

[raptor10]

/threadjack over

I am constantly impressed by AW's views of world politics, especially since I have such a small frame of reference. So lets get back to China.

 

[Flash]

I disagree with where you say that this is not news, they are publicly threatening us with economic collapse, not to say that they will do it, but it is a huge indicator of China's position wrt the US.

In the context of titan rain, China's escalating military budget, and China's satellite killing weapons, China seems to be saying (very loudly) that they are willing and capable of competing economically, militarily, and technologically, with the US.

When it comes to warfare, the Chinese wrote the book...

Mere bluster. If their economy collapses because we don't have the money to buy their goods anymore, they will have an angry and restive public on their hands.........

As for you limited knowledge of PRC Info Warfare ops, a defense budget that is still a fraction of ours and single demonstration of a capability that Russia has had for 25-40 years......they can't and won't compete with us directly for a looonnnggg time........

As for war, their last adventure ended in failure. It was a long time ago but with that kind of track record the last 50 years.......

 

[raptor10]

Mere bluster. If their economy collapses because we don't have the money to buy their goods anymore, they will have an angry and restive public on their hands.........

As for you limited knowledge of PRC Info Warfare ops, a defense budget that is still a fraction of ours and single demonstration of a capability that Russia has had for 25-40 years......they can't and won't compete with us directly for a looonnnggg time........

As for war, their last adventure ended in failure. It was a long time ago but with that kind of track record the last 50 years.......

But I don't believe they have a desire to compete directly with US, since 98 they have been big proponents of "Unrestricted Warfare" (You remember that book with the Chinese Colonels that said, back in 98, that a good demonstration of Unrestricted warfare would be a successful attack on the WTC by Bin Ladin... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unrestricted_Warfare)

from the wiki article:

Its primary concern is how a nation such as China can defeat a technologically superior opponent (such as the United States) through a variety of means. Rather than focusing on direct military confrontation, this book instead examines a variety of other means. Such means include using International Law (see Lawfare) and a variety of economic means to place one's opponent in a bad position and circumvent the need for direct military action.

[1]

Reducing one's opponent, the book notes, can be accomplished in a number of ways other than direct military confrontation. The book notes that these alternative methods "have the same and even greater destructive force than military warfare, and they have already produced serious threats different from the past and in many directions for...national security."

As Bruce Lee would say "the art of fighting without fighting."

 

[raptor10]

Mere bluster. If their economy collapses because we don't have the money to buy their goods anymore, they will have an angry and restive public on their hands...

The Chinese are also quite used to being treated badly by their government "we" saw how their people reacted to abject poverty and famine during and following the Chinese Civil War, and we see a mirror image of the Asian response to it in the citizenry of North Korea today...

 

[usmcecho4]

Really? How is that? "Engagement" with China wasn't Clinton's idea. I'd go back to Nixon if I were you. Bottom line, this is not news and China isn't threatening anyone. We have a mutually beneficial economic relationship that will, for the foreseeable future, trump all else.

Brett

Come on Brett you've been around long enough to know that everything bad goes back to Clinton and everything good goes back to Reagan?

Semper Fi,
usmcecho4

 

[Flash]

The Chinese are also quite used to being treated badly by their government "we" saw how their people reacted to abject poverty and famine during and following the Chinese Civil War, and we see a mirror image of the Asian response to it in the citizenry of North Korea today...

Much of the Chinese citizenry has become accustomed to their newfound wealth. And the factory workers have to feed their families........China today is not the China of 50, 30 or even 10 years ago.......

Times have changed, if you hadn't noticed........