China and Russia Eye Alaska A joint naval patrol off the Aleutians is a warning and a test for the U.S.
Americans who think the next major war won’t touch American territory might want to take note of the news that China and Russia conducted a joint naval operation last week near the coast of Alaska.
U.S. officials said 11 ships participated in the patrol near the Aleutian islands. It was the largest such operation analysts can recall and follows a smaller one in September 2022. The joint patrol underscores the cooperation between the two countries, which is extending to military operations beyond Beijing’s help for Moscow in Ukraine. (See Seth Cropsey nearby.)
The U.S. responded with dispatch, sending four destroyers and reconnaissance aircraft to shadow the foreign warships. That’s an improvement from the September episode, when a tepid U.S. response was criticized by Alaska Sen. Dan Sullivan.
A spokesman for U.S. Northern Command said the Sino-Russian patrol wasn’t perceived as a threat, but one day soon it could be. In the new era of great power competition, Russia, China and Iran are building an axis to challenge U.S. power. The naval patrol is best understood as a warning that U.S. territory isn’t safe, as well as a test of how the U.S. will respond.
The world is getting more dangerous, and a complacent U.S. political class isn’t educating the public about the growing threats.
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