First from Angry Chinese Blogger:
In a move that is likely to ruffle feathers in Beijing, Ono Yoshinori, the chief of Japan’s Defense Agency, has announced that Tokyo is now set to move its involvement in a controversial missile defense system up to the next stage.
Taiwan has successfully tested its domestically developed Hsiung Feng anti-ship missile, the China Times newspaper said on Sunday, as the island attempts to beef up its defense capability against China’s growing military threat.
Taiwan could begin “small initial production’’ of the Hsiung Feng, with a 1,000-km (600-mile) range that could hit military bases in China’s southeast, this year or in 2006, the Chinese-language newspaper said, quoting unidentified sources.
While both events are certain to upset Beijing, if the planned missile defenses go through, it would be a good thing for long-term peace. While recent economic ties have promoted peace through trade there is always a risk that these ties will strain. The main reason China had never attempted to take Taiwan by force prior to the opening of commerce is because it was never be assured of winning. This will simply maintain the status quo.
Protectionism in Congress is a far bigger threat to peace than Taiwanese or Japanese missile spending.
