A major United States military build-up is under way in Asia and the Pacific with the purpose of confronting China, according to award-winning journalist John Pilger. Nuclear war is no longer unthinkable.
In his film, The Coming War on China, Pilger warns that the world's greatest military power, the US, and the world's second economic power, China, may well be on the road to war.
China has been building airstrips in the South China Sea in the disputed Spratly Islands archipelago, creating a flashpoint for war with the US.
"If you stood on the tallest building in Beijing and looked out on the Pacific Ocean, you'd see American warships, you'd see Guam is about to sink because there are so many missiles pointed at China. You'd look up at Korea and see American armaments pointing at China, you'd see Japan which is basically a glove over the American fist," says James Bradley, author of The China Mirage.
The policy has been taken up by Obama's successor, Donald Trump, who, during his election campaign, said: "We can't continue to allow China to rape our country and that's what they're doing."
Filmed on five possible front lines across Asia and the Pacific over the course of two years, the story is told in chapters that connect a secret and forgotten past to the rapacious actions of great power today, and to a resistance of which little is known in the West.
In his film, The Coming War on China, Pilger warns that the world's greatest military power, the US, and the world's second economic power, China, may well be on the road to war.
China has been building airstrips in the South China Sea in the disputed Spratly Islands archipelago, creating a flashpoint for war with the US.
John Pilger Q&A: 'US missiles are pointed at China'
The rise of China is viewed in Washington as a threat to American dominance. To counter this, President Barack Obama announced a "pivot to Asia", meaning that almost two-thirds of all US naval forces would be transferred to Asia and the Pacific, their weapons aimed at China."If you stood on the tallest building in Beijing and looked out on the Pacific Ocean, you'd see American warships, you'd see Guam is about to sink because there are so many missiles pointed at China. You'd look up at Korea and see American armaments pointing at China, you'd see Japan which is basically a glove over the American fist," says James Bradley, author of The China Mirage.
| A map of US army bases and so-called lily pads circling China. The US "pivot to Asia" meant that almost two thirds of US naval forces would be deployed to Asia and the Pacific. |
Filmed on five possible front lines across Asia and the Pacific over the course of two years, the story is told in chapters that connect a secret and forgotten past to the rapacious actions of great power today, and to a resistance of which little is known in the West.
