Chinese navy evacuates Chinese nationals from war-torn Yemen

[Major Shaitan Singh]

People search for survivors under the rubble of houses destroyed by an air strike near Sanaa Airport March 26, 2015.[Photo/Agencies]


Foreign Minister Wang Yi confirmed on Sunday that China has begun preparations forevacuating more than 500 Chinese nationals from war-torn Yemen.

Wang made the comment while attending the annual Boao Forum for Asia conference inHainan province. He said all Chinese nationals will soon be safely on their way home.

More than 200 staff members from the United Nations, foreign embassies and otherorganizations were evacuated by air after a third night of heavy airstrikes on Saturday.Pakistan said it was preparing to evacuate its citizens and diplomatic staff, according toAFP.

As early as February, both the United States and the United Kingdom had shut down theirembassies in Yemen.

Wang said China has already launched a contingency plan to protect Chinese nationals.

According to a notice posted on Friday by the China Shipowners' Association, the ChinesePeople's Liberation Army navy was to temporarily suspend its escort mission in the Gulf ofAden and Somali waters.

The notice also stated that it is unclear when the mission would be resumed, and it urgedshipowners to take precautions against possible pirate attacks.

It was the first time the fleet had suspended escort missions since China sent its first fleetto the Gulf of Aden and Somali waters in December 2008.

Zhang Junshe, a senior researcher at the PLA Naval Military Studies Research Institute,said, "We have to wait for confirmation from the navy and the Ministry of Foreign Affairsto see if the fleet was dispatched to evacuate Chinese nationals in Yemen. One thing forsure is that the suspension will be a temporary one and it won't last long."

Tian Qi, the Chinese ambassador to Yemen, said on Thursday that no Chinese nationalswere known to have been killed or injured.

Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen are battling Saudi-supported government loyalistsfor control of the country in a conflict that has escalated in recent months. Violence thereis leading to fears of a civil war that could lead to a regional conflict.

The latest Chinese naval fleet left China on Dec 2 to conduct escort missions in the Gulf ofAden and Somali waters. The fleet is made up of the missile frigates Linyi and Weifang,and the supply ship Weishanhu, which has two helicopters and more than 700 troops.

 

[black-hawk_101]

Will PAF going to deploy the 48 A-5Cs and some 50+ F-7Ps on Yemeni-Omanian border for bombing the Houthis?

 

[Major Shaitan Singh]

China’s ongoing evacuation of its citizens from a chaotic Libya is starting to draw close scrutiny from pundits due to the PLAN’s use of a 054A class Frigate (Xuzhou, FFG-530) amongst other civilian means of evacuation. Unsurprisingly, we can leave it to some media outlets to exaggerate this action into nothing less than old school imperialist “gunboat diplomacy.”

A not-so-subtle proclamation of China’s “menacing” display of naval power came from the Council on Foreign Relation’s (CFR) Elliot Abrams, who wrote the following on the CFR blog, (here)

“In recent days, the White House has been saying that the United States had to watch its words and actions because American citizens were at risk in Libya. So instead of acting, we are building a diplomatic coalition. China has taken a different tack: to use power. Instead of biting their tongue, the Chinese appear to be making it clear to the Qadhafi regime that no danger to Chinese workers will be tolerated.”
An even more provocative article titled “China Fills Libya Power Void” appeared on the website of Investor’s Business Daily, which compared China’s supposed “assertiveness” to “US inaction,”

“Up until now, the conventional thinking from the Tom Friedman crowd claims that China is somehow engaged in a new model of commercial engagement abroad, quite unlike the old empires of the past that projected military power. That theory is out the window now with this naval action. China will defend its own, same as any other empire.”

The IBD article (here) went on to argue that:

“China's assertiveness in the Libyan crisis stands in contrast to that of the U.S. By the time we found a vessel to ferry a mere 600 nationals out of the country, the Chinese had already transported 12,000 of its people to Crete… China is setting a precedent with its newfound show of force.”
Instead of “praising” China’s “new-found assertiveness,” perhaps the authors should have asked why the PLAN was able to sail into Libya with impunity? And why neither the rebels nor the Libyan government questioned whether China has ulterior motives other than ferrying its citizens away from the cross-fire? The correct answer is NOT China’s determined “show of force” or “power projection,” but its record of restrained and infrequent use of force, coupled with its consistent policy of non-interference in the internal affairs of other states. Having built up its “street-cred” in Africa as a non-intrusive business partner, China provoked no suspicions from either side of the Libyan upheaval on the rare occasion that it used military assets as part of the evacuation.

The authors of the aforementioned articles have drawn precisely the opposite conclusion that should have been reached. China’s relatively smooth evacuation vis-a-vis US awkwardness represents NOT the need for aggressive intervention, but rather the power of restraint surmounting that of forceful coercion.