Tensions rising over China's aircraft carrier quest

China's declared intention of gaining naval supremacy in its and neighboring waters--and perhaps in oceans far away--puts the United States in a difficult position; mainly because there's not a lot it can do about it.

China intends to launch its first domestically produced aircraft carrier--one of the most visible symbols of a nation's military might--within five years.

Unlike the United States, which along with the former Soviet Union, spent decades building up its military machine, China is trying to play catch-up in record time.

The U.S. Defense Department expressed concern Monday about China's naval buildup in its annual report on China's military power.

In reality, though, it is powerless to do anything.

Global Times, a Chinese newspaper affiliated with the People's Daily, mouthpiece of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, carried an editorial July 30 titled "An optimal aircraft carrier strategy" which said the deployment of such warships would provide effective deterrence and strengthen China's overall military power.

It went on to say that on the high seas, "an aircraft carrier would be an effective tool to maintain order, and it could win China respect from neighboring countries."

The editorial urged China's military leaders to start domestic production as early as possible.

It is extremely unusual for a newspaper affiliated with the CPC to refer to China's plans to produce aircraft carriers as the government has maintained strict secrecy on the issue.

According to Chinese sources, when the Chinese leadership decided in April 2009 to earmark funds in the defense budget to construct aircraft carriers, it pondered whether to make an official announcement.

But it decided not to do so, fearing that it could give rise to unnecessary international tension over perceptions that China poses a growing military threat.

But that didn't stop military leaders from boasting about China's new military assertiveness, a theme that won wide support among Internet bloggers in China.

The strategy was embraced further when the U.S. military expressed its intention to deploy the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS George Washington to joint naval exercises in the Yellow Sea located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula.

Given the proximity of Beijing and Shanghai to those waters and the fact the area was targeted by imperial powers in the 19th century, China's naval strategy may not sound so unreasonable.

Despite China's nervousness, there is nothing in international law to prevent the United States from deploying the carrier in the Yellow Sea.

The International Herald Leader, which is affiliated with China's state-run Xinhua News Agency, carried a hard-line Op-Ed piece that called on China to prohibit other countries from deploying their aircraft carriers in waters near China.

Along with nuclear weapons, aircraft carriers are a symbol of military might. A military critic in China likened aircraft carriers to trump cards "to overcome the (China's) history of humiliation."

Military sources in Beijing said the Chinese navy apparently began to take a particularly hard-line stance against the United States earlier this year.

"We can see that China is spending a huge amount of its military budget for the construction of aircraft carriers," said a source. "With its naval power, China is seriously trying to counter the United States. This stance could lead to small-scale clashes and friction with U.S. forces or the (Japanese) Self-Defense Forces."

In its annual report on China's military power, the U.S. Defense Department questioned China's true intentions.