China and Russia; The Guns of April

  China is getting more convinced every day that if they send a massive invasion force into Taiwan, Biden and the US Military won't do anything.

Russia is getting more convinced every day that if they send massive invasion forces into Ukraine, Biden and the US Military won't do anything.

Another fact to consider is that Russia and China are communicating their plans to each other and most likely their disdain for Biden and their belief that they can act with impunity.

Russian troops are massing on the Ukraine border, Chinese vessels are swarming Whitsun Reef of the Philippines in the South China Sea, and China's air force is flying almost daily through Taiwan's air-defense identification zone. Chinese troops for almost a year have been dug in deep in Indian-controlled Ladakh in the Himalayas. Two large aggressors are threatening to break apart neighbors and absorb them.

The Biden administration has issued warnings to both Moscow and Beijing, but neither looks impressed. American attempts to de-escalate flashpoints are seen in Russian and Chinese circles as failures of resolve.

At least at this moment, those adversaries are right to scoff at the new U.S. leader.

The Chinese are especially bold. They describe their flights near Taiwan as "combat drills." At the same time, they are sending large ships close to Taiwan's waters. The Liaoning, their first aircraft carrier, recently steamed along the east side of the island in an especially provocative gesture.

The Global Times, an unofficial Communist Party tabloid used by Beijing to signal new policies, on April 12 posted a video of Hu Xijin, its editor-in-chief, warning that Beijing would overfly Taiwan — in other words, fly into Taiwan's sovereign airspace — to "declare sovereignty."

Threats like that start wars. Chinese leaders speak provocatively because, among other reasons, they do not believe the United States or others will come to Taiwan's rescue.

For decades, Washington has maintained a policy of "strategic ambiguity," not telling either Beijing or Taipei what the U.S. would do in the face of imminent conflict. This approach worked in generally peaceful times with a more cooperative Chinese leadership, but, with far more aggressive rulers in Beijing, that policy is failing.

Beijing is no longer impressed by American power. China's top diplomat, Yang Jiechi, in the infamous Anchorage meeting in the middle of last month, launched into a tirade in which he told Secretary of State Antony Blinken and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan that the U.S. could no longer talk to China "from a position of strength."

Beijing is openly mocking Washington. Ominously, Global Times on April 14 ran an editorial with this headline: "When Real Determination Is Lacking, the U.S. Should Maintain 'Strategic Ambiguity.'"

In effect, China's leaders are saying they do not believe President Joe Biden would defend Taiwan. The editorial, in support of this view, makes it clear that Beijing thinks the military balance of power is in its favor, even if the U.S. were willing to fight on the island republic's side. In a propaganda blast on April 8, China's regime said Taiwan "won't stand a chance" if it decides to invade the island. This Chinese self-perception of overwhelming strength is extraordinarily dangerous, of course.

It is, therefore, time to reestablish deterrence. As Joseph Bosco, a Pentagon China desk officer in the George W. Bush administration, told Gatestone this month, "Given the dramatically changed circumstances, different words are needed now."

Unfortunately, Beijing is not hearing them. True, the U.S. and Japan issued a joint leaders' statement mentioning Taiwan — the first time that has happened since 1969 — during the visit of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga to the White House on April 16, but the words were milquetoast. At this moment, the failure to adopt appropriately robust language only adds to the perception of American weakness and underlines concerns expressed by Bosco, now a prominent China analyst, and others.

Here;  China and Russia: The Guns of April :: Gatestone Institute

We know Russia will be front and center during the very Last Days and many folks believe China to be part of the "kings of the East" mentioned in Revelation.  America simply isn't mentioned anywhere.  As we read articles like this it makes us wonder if America somehow gets destroyed by these emboldened enemies, or if we implode in our own mountain of debt?

Hopefully it's the rapture of the church that collapses America.  When millions of the "better than average" folks who have the Holy Spirit indwelling them simply vanish, it will be more than the "faith and confidence" currently upholding the US Government will be able to bear.