World News Thread & Breaking News!!

[Franklin]

China may have become too strong for comfort for the Americans.

Poll: China, not Iran, now USA's top enemy

China, not Iran, is now America's No. 1 enemy, according to a new Gallup Poll.

The Chinese hold that distinction primarily because Americans have spread their negative views across several perceived threats - Iran (16%), North Korea (16%), Russia (9%), Iraq (7%), Afghanistan (5%) and Syria (3%) - while holding relatively constant in their mistrust of China (20%) over the past few years.

The poll, reported Thursday, also found that a slight majority (52%) sees China's growing economic power as a "critical threat" to "the vital interests" of the United States in the next decade, while 46% cite such a threat from the country's military.

More political independents named China as the country's greatest enemy than did Republicans or Democrats, but the enemy ranking cut equally across all age groups.

The open-ended survey found that for the first time since 2006 Iran no longer tops the enemies' list, with a 50% drop in the past two years. Eight years ago, 31% of respondents cited Iran as the USA's "greatest enemy," compared with 16% today.

The drop accompanies a change in Tehran's leadership and an agreement with the West over its nuclear program. Nonetheless, Americans still hold negative views of Iran overall, another Gallup Poll showed Tuesday. Only 12% of respondents voiced a favorable opinion of Iran.

Americans' bad feelings toward North Korea have jumped nearly 60% in the past two years amid Pyongyang's standoff with the West over its nuclear weapons program and human rights record.

The so-called Hermit Kingdom occupies the basement of the favorability rankings at just 10%. Canada dwells in the penthouse at 90%.

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[bd popeye]

Follow the link for the full story. It is rather lengthy.

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(CNN) -- On any day, between 5 million and 6 million containers are on the high seas, carrying everything from potato chips to refrigerators. But not all of them make it to their destination, as the crew of the Svendborg Maersk have just found out.

Their Danish-flagged ship was in the Bay of Biscay last week as hurricane-force winds battered the Atlantic coast of Europe. Amid waves of 30 feet and winds of 60 knots, the Svendborg began losing containers off northern France. After the ship arrived in the Spanish port of Malaga this week, Maersk discovered that about 520 containers were unaccounted for. Stacks of others had collapsed.

It's the biggest recorded loss of containers overboard in a single incident.

As repairs are made to the Svendborg in Malaga, Palle Laursen, Maersk's vice president of operations, says the company is examining its procedures "to avoid similar incidents in the future." The company told CNN that the extreme weather had an unexpectedly forceful impact on the ship's movements. It said 85% of the lost containers were empty and others included such dry goods as frozen meat. None contained dangerous goods. Maersk is now contacting customers to tell them that their shipments are at the bottom of the ocean.

 

[Equation]

Follow the link for the full story. It is rather lengthy.

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Hmmm....salvage teams around the world are heading towards the bottom to scavenge whatever they can. Every divers for themselves!

 

[delft]

Follow the link for the full story. It is rather lengthy.

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It must be easy to weight the container when it is picked up by the loading crane. The crane can report each container to the board computer of the ship while it is being loaded. The computer can then "keep an eye" on the stresses that will occur during the voyage in the sea states to be reckoned with.
Waves of 30 feet high are not exceptional. The largest waves measured in the Atlantic as well as in the North sea were about 100 feet high.

 

[ManilaBoy45]

Manila Says it will Respond Militarily if China Uses Force Against Filipinos Around Disputed Island

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Published on Feb 24, 2014 1:13 PM
By Raul Dancel, Philippines Correspondent In Manila

The Philippines said on Monday it would respond militarily if China uses force to drive away Filipinos fishing in waters around a disputed island in the South China Sea.General Emmanuel Bautista, head of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), issued this warning as a response to reports that ships from China's Coast Guard drove away Filipinos fishing in areas around Scarborough Shoal using water cannons on Jan 27."We have to react militarily if force is applied," he said at an event organised by the Foreign Correspondents Association of the Philippines.When asked about the situation around Scarborough Shoal, Gen Bautista said it is Manila's policy to avoid a confrontation with Chinese vessels patrolling the South China Sea.But he stressed that it is the AFP's duty to defend Filipinos when they are subjected to "armed violence" within Philippine territories.

 

[bd popeye]

That's what they say..In reality what could the RP do against China if the RP felt military action was necessary? They just don't have the forces. I feel this statement is just rhetoric.

 

[SteelBird]

That's what they say..In reality what could the RP do against China if the RP felt military action was necessary? They just don't have the forces. I feel this statement is just rhetoric.

Look like someone is playing with fire. I hope that what the RP says is just saying, and they will never materialize what they've said. I pray for world peace, Amen!

 

[Jeff Head]

That's what they say..In reality what could the RP do against China if the RP felt military action was necessary? They just don't have the forces. I feel this statement is just rhetoric.

Their two retired Hamilton Class Coast Guard cutters that have now been refit as light frigates may be able to handle the un-armed or even lightly armed Chinese Coast Guard vessels.

But if they do, and the Chinese send in actual PLAN forces, there would be nothing the RP could do...particularly of the PLAN was covered with any type of modern air support, either refueled from the mainland, or as a part of the Liaoning group.

No, even though the RP is modestly building up its forces (and the new South Korean frigates will be nice for them), they simply do not have the strength to contend with the PLAN.

They of course hope that they can hold off the initial issue long enough for the US Navy to take a part. But exactly what part the US Navy takes will depend entirely on the circumstance and the US is not likely to be drawn into an large battle with the PLAN unless the PRC has done something very egregious.

 

[kickars]

"Philippines says China 'fired water cannon' on Filipino fishermen"

That's the headline news on BBC News:

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When similar things happened to Chinese fishermen (happened quite a lot in fact), Medias like BBC tends to write the story differently. It would sound more like Chinese fishermen often illegally enter other nations' water in order to feed huge demand by the population of China, then other nations' coast guards had to drive them out to protect their nations' resources.

When it's the Chinese coast guards doing the similar things (only once), the story suddenly sounds like poor fishermen were fired on by the well armed Chinese coast guards. Again, they turn the story into Chinese are steeling from the others (this time it's the Chinese government represented by the Chinese coast guard) . And they never forget to add Sino-Japan issue in any of the Chinese news storys.

So, medias like BBC would always make any situation sounds like either Chinese fishermen are stealing or the Chinese government is. I wonder why? What good it does beside increasing misunderstanding or even hatred towards anything to do with China in the west? What will this kind of mentality lead us?

The same goes to the Chinese media. Like the Ukraine situation, all the medias in China in the past week have been standing on the government's side without any research into their report what so ever.

Fishermen, middle class and working class people (what ever you want to call normal people who just want to make honest living) will always suffer when these kind of situation happens. Nowadays, media has a huge role to play. They must do better...

 

[joshuatree]

Their two retired Hamilton Class Coast Guard cutters that have now been refit as light frigates may be able to handle the un-armed or even lightly armed Chinese Coast Guard vessels.

But if they do, and the Chinese send in actual PLAN forces, there would be nothing the RP could do...particularly of the PLAN was covered with any type of modern air support, either refueled from the mainland, or as a part of the Liaoning group.

No, even though the RP is modestly building up its forces (and the new South Korean frigates will be nice for them), they simply do not have the strength to contend with the PLAN.

They of course hope that they can hold off the initial issue long enough for the US Navy to take a part. But exactly what part the US Navy takes will depend entirely on the circumstance and the US is not likely to be drawn into an large battle with the PLAN unless the PRC has done something very egregious.

They could also use their Jacinto class corvettes in addition to the del Pilar class frigates against the CG vessels. Both classes can match and handle Chinese CG vessels. But the bigger question isn't how long can they repel a Chinese naval force or when US reinforcements arrive. The bigger question is, would this be considered as the actual first shot in a presumed war and if so, how does that apply to the Mutual Defense Treaty? It wouldn't be China firing the first shot and can't be correctly called as the aggressor in that presumed war. Because what Bautista is saying is that the Philippines will change this confrontation from one of civilian to one of military.

The Chinese CG using water cannons is a lesson they learned in their encounters with the JCG. One could argue they've become more restrained by using water cannons instead of warning shots or flares.