An American aircraft carrier was closely monitored by a Chinese submarine off the coast of Japan last month. This is what they confirmed a few minutes ago from the Pentagon. A Kilo-class Soviet-made Chinese diesel-electric submarine has "observed" the USS Ronald Reagan for twelve hours the 24 last October.
No threatening behavior was detected. No communication between the submarine and the battle group of the aircraft carrier. It was more than a brief meeting - comment from the Pentagon -our antisom aircraft did not give up a moment.
The episode was not commented on by the Chinese.
"Whenever we are in practice with the Japanese, China sends their submarine to take a look."
Nearby navigation always involves risks: misunderstandings or a single strategic calculation error could trigger unpleasant events. At the height of the cold war, ships and submarines (American and Soviet) followed each other across the oceans of the world, testing their respective capacities. In the 1984, a Soviet submarine and an American aircraft carrier, the Kitty Hawk, clashed in the Sea of Japan. The Soviet ship got the worst and suffered some damage to the hull.
They add from the Pentagon "The truth is that they keep track of our movements. By doing so, we monitor them, studying their abilities." After the bitter discoveries of recent days (a new hunt and the speed with which the work of the two aircraft carriers continues under construction), from the Pentagon breathe a sigh of relief. "The Chinese are building submarines at a high rate, but they are still relatively noisy. They are at least a generation behind ours. That's why we let ourselves be tracked: in this way we find out what they can do."
(photo: US Navy)
