Since 1588, when Spain's Invincible Fleet was defeated by the British Royal Navy, Britain has relied on its maritime supremacy to firmly maintain its title of the Empire on which the sun never sets.
The British example also proves the important role of sea power in national development and national security after modern times.
In 2002, China took a leap forward on the road to strengthening its sea power.
However, this step was extremely difficult. When passing through the Suez Canal , there was an unexpected incident of being "jumped in line" by the US military, which deeply shocked the People's Navy.
1. Sudden queue jumping
On May 15, 2002, the Chinese Navy's guided-missile destroyer "Qingdao" and the comprehensive supply ship "Taicang" unmoored and set sail at Qingdao Port. The People's Navy launched its first global voyage in history here. the prologue.
Starting from May 15, the formation composed of "Qingdao" and "Taicang" has successively crossed the Indian Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean and five continents including Asia, Africa, Europe, South America, Oceania , passing 15 Straits and waterways, it has passed through two world-famous canals, , Suez, and Panama, spanning a total of 68 dimensions, and the total voyage reached 33,000 nautical miles in 132 days.
It can be said that this is the "first step" for the People's Navy to go global.
It is worth noting that the "Qingdao" destroyer is China's first truly modern multi-purpose combat ship. It has a full range of surface strike, air defense and anti-submarine capabilities. It is also the first in the Chinese Navy. The ship is equipped with sophisticated Western-designed weapons systems and sensor systems.
The "Taicang" class supply ship is equipped with 4 oil and water supply stations and 2 dry cargo supply stations. There is a helicopter landing platform at the rear of the ship, which provides the possibility of vertical supply.
The "Taicang" class supply ship can carry 10,550 tons of fuel, 1,000 tons of light diesel, 200 tons of supply water, 200 tons of drinking water and 50 tons of refrigerated food at a time. It is also equipped with four 76-type twin 37mm anti-aircraft guns, which are completely Has the ability to supply ocean supplies.
The joint formation sailing of the destroyer "Qingdao" and the comprehensive supply ship "Taicang" allowed the world to see the "strength" of the Chinese navy.
However, the Chinese Navy encountered a lot of trouble on its first "trip". The problem lay in Suez Canal .
When the formation arrived at Egypt, in order to reduce navigation costs, but also to test the navy's ability to pass through the canal, and to enhance the People's Navy's combat effectiveness and traffic capabilities in complex areas, the formation chose to go through the Suez Canal to the next navigation point.
The Suez Canal is a waterway located in Egypt and built in 1869. It is an important shipping channel connecting the Mediterranean and the Red Sea. It provides the shortest route from Europe to the lands near the Indian Ocean and the Western Pacific every year. It is also an important oil and gas transportation channel. Bulk cargo commercial transport channel.
7% of the world's maritime trade volume passes through the Suez Canal, 35% of which are ports along the Red Sea and Persian Gulf , 20% are ports in India and Southeast Asia, and 39% are in the Far East.
It can be said that the Suez Canal is an important strategic channel connecting sea power in Europe, Africa and even Asia. The People's Navy chooses to pass through the Suez Canal. In addition to testing the comprehensive capabilities of the formation, more importantly, it is also showing its strength to the world. Build a "bridge" for external communication.
Warships need to pay high tolls to pass through the Suez Canal. This is a necessary condition to ensure the "priority" of warships.
In terms of maritime channels, warships with strong combat effectiveness are the guarantee for maintaining shipping channels. Therefore, it is necessary to give certain priority to warships.
At the same time, various countries also hope that their warships can receive extra care when passing through common waterways to ensure that their navies can quickly and efficiently reach the exercise area or combat area.
Of course, to maintain all this, you must "pay money."
Before the "Qingdao" and "Taicang" formations arrived at the Suez Canal, the Chinese Navy had already reached a consensus with Egypt. In order to ensure the efficient passage of the formation, China paid high tolls to Egypt. Therefore, in the original In the final plan, the Chinese Navy’s Global Ship Formation was arranged to pass in the first sequence.
But the accident still occurred.
Just as the naval formation was preparing to enter the Suez Canal, an uninvited guest appeared.
The U.S. fleet suddenly "appeared" in front of the Chinese naval formation and swaggered "jumping in line" into the Suez Canal.
This scene surprised the Chinese naval formation at the scene. What was even more shocking was that the American fleet was also escorted by the Egyptian naval formation. This meant that this was with the support and support of the Egyptian navy. Completed queue-jumping behavior.
Queue-jumping on sea routes is a very rude and dangerous behavior. It means disrespect from other co-sailing fleets and is full of provocation.
However, the matter is not over yet. Just when the Chinese naval fleet wanted to enter the Suez Canal, the Egyptian side completely closed the cross-river bridge on the Suez Canal. The reason was actually to prevent "accidents". The Egyptian side was using the United States to Every aspect of the ship was taken care of.
In order to allow the US warship to pass through the Suez Canal smoothly and independently, Egypt did everything it could.
In fact, the choice of the US warship to jump into the Chinese naval formation is essentially a naked provocation.
As the Chinese navy grows stronger after entering the 21st century, the United States feels threatened.
When the Chinese Navy announced its global voyage, the White House could no longer sit still. They believed that once the Chinese Navy began its global voyage, it would be on the road to competing with the United States, and China, which has the ability to sail around the world, The navy will also seriously threaten the United States' absolute hegemony at sea.
With the White House's approach, it is impossible to give up without doing something.
It is impossible to use active attacks to cause trouble, so the only option is to use disgusting methods.
Therefore, the United States set its sights on a canal with a traffic sequence, and they chose the Suez Canal, which is very important to Europe, Africa and Asia, to start. It really has ulterior motives.
With the joint efforts of the United States and Egypt, they violated the National Maritime Convention and relevant regulations and forcibly staged a "husband singing and wife following" in front of the Chinese Navy. attempted to use small tricks to "disgust" the Chinese naval formation to show its control over maritime supremacy.
Why can the US military be so willful in the Suez Canal?
2. The "interference" behind
The willfulness of the United States comes from its "strong voice" in the Suez Canal.
The Suez Canal is an important channel for controlling Europe, Africa and Asia. Since the days of the British Empire, the struggle for the ownership and use rights of Suez has continued.
In 1956, British rule in Egypt came to an end. The old empire, which continued to lose power after World War II, reluctantly evacuated Egypt, which it had occupied for 74 years. What made them even more reluctant to leave was the Suez Canal in Egypt.
The then British Prime Minister Macdonald once clearly pointed out: "The Suez Canal is the center of the entire defense plan of the British Empire." The Suez Canal is an important channel that maintains the entire British colonies and the British mainland, and is the key to achieving British military deterrence. As an important military strategic artery, Macdonald believed that Britain must fully maintain the Suez Canal and must not give up under any circumstances.
Egyptian President Nasser suddenly announced the withdrawal of the Suez Canal in 1956, which caused strong dissatisfaction from Britain, France and other countries. This touched the bottom line of the British interests in the Middle East and North Africa . With the support of Britain, France and other countries, the The Second Middle East War broke out.
As the war spread, the British and French couldn't wait to join the battlefield.
On the other side of the Atlantic, the Americans have long had "ambivalent thoughts" on the Suez Canal. They do not want the British to control the "lifeline" of the Suez Canal, but they also want to control the Middle East and North Africa through the Suez Canal.
The Suez Canal War provided them with such an opportunity. Under the "joint alliance" with the Soviet Union, Britain and France were forced to withdraw from Egypt, which also indirectly resolved the crisis in Suez.
Through this incident, the United States successfully gained the right to speak in North Africa and the Middle East, and it was also this incident that allowed the United States to see the absolute value of the Suez Canal.
In the following years, the United States continued to strengthen its activities around the Suez Canal. More importantly, in the process of repairing the Suez Canal, the United States would cordially give "care" like a "rich man". U.S. officials and private citizens Investment in the Suez Canal can indeed be "generous".
Under such an investment background, although the Suez Canal is controlled by Egypt, it cannot withstand the money offensive of the "financier father". The Suez Canal Authority can always provide the United States with as much convenience as possible. After all, the United States " It’s really too much.”
Looking at this background, the "incident" between Chinese and US warships in the Suez Canal was actually premeditated by the United States. The reason why
chose to be in the Suez Canal instead of the Panama Canal is because the Suez Canal is far away from North America. The United States needs such long-distance operations to avoid suspicion of . On the other hand, it is because the Suez Canal is indeed sufficient. The face of the United States gives the United States room to display its "acting skills."
More importantly, from a geographical perspective, the United States' ability to support Egypt's security maintenance is extraordinary. In order to better obtain the interests of the Middle East, the United States needs a strategic rear such as Egypt to maintain its operations. , whether it is rear supply or security issues behind it, the United States will not give up Egypt's strategic position.
Therefore, the United States has always invested a lot of "emotional investment", "political investment" and "monetary investment" in Egypt. As far as Egypt is concerned, with the investment of the United States, it can participate more in dialogues with countries around the world. Moreover, by using the Suez Canal as a bargaining chip, he can obtain more benefits and benefits from the United States. This is an example of using politics and national security to obtain benefits.
Going back to the incident, Egypt's "flattery" to the United States is actually a surrender to the United States' strong maritime power. More importantly, under the shock of the United States' strong maritime power, Egypt is more willing to surrender to the United States, and Non-equal dialogue with China and abnormal maritime power interaction model have turned international shipping rules into empty talk.
Fortunately, this confrontation did not affect the Chinese Navy's first global tour. During this global tour, the Chinese Navy gained global attention and allowed countries around the world to see a more open and win-win world. Chinese style.
Since then, China’s path to strengthening its maritime power has been on the right track.
3. Strengthen sea power and strengthen the future
While seeing the gap, continuous efforts are the way to progress.
In the 1980s, the passage of the United Nations Convention on the Sea set off a wave of competition for sea rights. Human society has shifted from a battle for land to a battle for oceans. In the past, the battle for every inch of land has become the battle for every inch of the sea.
By 2008, China's maritime strategic line achieved initial success, and the Chinese navy began to gain a firm foothold in the world. "Offshore defense" transformed into "offshore defense + far sea defense."
The change in strategic thinking is the Chinese Navy's efforts to develop towards the sea.
Since the first round-the-world voyage in 2002, the Chinese Navy has carried out epoch-making reforms in equipment construction and daily training. From a handful of ships in the past to the daily "dumplings" now, from no aircraft carrier to now With three aircraft carriers, the strength of the Chinese navy is gradually catching up with that of Western countries, and even has a tendency to surpass it.
The key to developing towards the sea is to gain more living space and voice. With the continuous development of China's economy, we need more international cooperation platforms, and having a navy to protect maritime interests and maintain maritime security is the key to stability. One of the important prerequisites for all this.
In the new era, the Chinese Navy's diplomacy is different from the "power diplomacy" of Western countries. It embraces the idea of win-win cooperation. The Chinese Navy's diplomacy is more meaningful in terms of moderation, coexistence, cooperation, and win-win.
At present, China's naval diplomacy has formed a naval diplomacy model that focuses on warship visits and uses various forms flexibly. It also includes the "hospital ship visit + medical assistance" diplomatic model that is very Chinese characteristics and is not deterrent. , enhancing mutual cooperation is an important signal for China’s naval diplomacy.
With the continuous improvement of naval construction and the continuous extension of China's naval diplomacy, the navy's external exchanges have become an important way to achieve the country's overall diplomatic goals.
The events we encountered in the Suez Canal 20 years ago will not happen again today, because we already have sufficient maritime military strength and strong enough confidence to face external threats. , when facing unfair treatment, we have the ability to talk to the other party and make demands from the other party based on our strength.
The era when we could conquer us by setting up strong ships and cannons on the sea is gone forever. Now when we face similar problems, no one will challenge us anymore, and no one will criticize us anymore. We point fingers.
With the efforts of the Chinese navy, strong sea power will surely have a strong future and an open world pattern of win-win cooperation.
References:
1. "20 years ago today, the People's Navy embarked on its first circumnavigation of the world"; "Global Network"; 2022-05-15
2. "Friendly cooperation or a show of strength - Research on the characteristics of China's naval diplomacy in the new era"; Author : Zhai Dayu; "Journal of Dalian Maritime University: Social Science Edition"; Issue 5, 2021;
3. "Research on the Strategic Transformation of the Chinese Navy since the Founding of New China"; Author: Zhou Yulan, Yin Zhaolu; "Theoretical Observation"; Issue 7, 2021 period
