China Forcing US and Allies Out, Preparing for Blockade of Taiwan: Former Marine Colonel

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China is forcing the United States and its allies out of the region and preparing for a blockade of Taiwan according to Grant Newsham, retired Marine Colonel and author of “When China attacks.”

The U.S. Indo-Pacific Command recently accused the Chinese People’s Liberation Army Navy of engaging in dangerous naval maneuvers on June 3 during an intercept with the American destroyer USS Chung-Hoon in the Taiwan Strait.

According to the command, the USS Chung-Hoon was conducting “a routine south to north Taiwan Strait transit” alongside the Canadian frigate HMCS Montreal when the incident happened.

It stated that a Chinese warship overtook the USS Chung-Hoon on its port side and crossed its bow at a distance of 150 yards, forcing the American vessel to reduce its speed to 10 knots to avoid a collision.

“The [Chinese vessel] LY 132’s closest point of approach was 150 yards, and its actions violated the maritime ‘Rules of the Road’ of safe passage in international waters,” it stated.

China was “sending a very clear message really for the umpteenth time that they consider the South China Sea, the Taiwan Strait, and surrounding waters to be Chinese territory. And they are gradually locking down control of these waters and doing it bit by bit,” Newsham told “China in Focus” on NTD.

In another move, a Chinese fighter jet aggressively intercepted a U.S. aircraft earlier in the month, risking the lives of its crew and escalating tensions between the two nations.

A J-16 fighter pilot “performed an unnecessarily aggressive maneuver” against a U.S. RC-135 reconnaissance plane on May 26, according to a statement released by United States Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) on May 30.

Indo-Pacific Command released a video of the incident, in which the Chinese fighter pilot aggressively cuts across the nose of the U.S. aircraft, forcing it to fly through the smaller plane’s turbulence.

Newsham referred to the communist regime’s act saying, “ It’s China pursuing its objectives, which is to assert absolute control over these waters that are sort of in China’s vicinity, and to keep the Americans out and to keep everyone else out unless they enter at China’s sufferance.”

“And it’s China really setting the rules for this territory, and doing whatever they can to tighten down control. And you will look at this over the years. And you’ll see the Chinese capabilities to enforce this have gradually strengthened. And one of these days, they are just going to say ‘Don’t come in.’ But it’s a gradual process. And it’s what China does, they lay claim to something they want. And then they sort of harden it, and then they absolutely take control of it. And we’re seeing this process played out,” he added.

As the United States is constantly seeking to reestablish normal communications with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in the aftermath of the Chinese spy balloon incident back in February, Newsham said that the United States is not aware of the game that China is playing.

“The Americans don’t seem to recognize that that’s what the Chinese objectives are, they don’t want to believe it. And the idea seems to be ‘Well, if we just keep going in, the Chinese will understand that we’re serious. And if we talk to them, even they will understand that what they’re doing is wrong. It’s not how the game is played. It’s not how civilized nations behave,’” he said.

“But there seems to be a lack of understanding that the Chinese have a very different perspective of how international law, international custom and practice work. And they see it very differently than we do, and you’ve got to recognize that. So if you’re trying to think of some way to deal with it, it’s not going to be by trying to convince the Chinese that the way we and the West and the civilized nations do things is the right way. They don’t see it that way,” he added.

Newsham singled out the recent remark by Chinese state councilor and defense minister General Li Shangfu.

Li said that China’s military will attack “without any hesitation” any nation that dares to separate it from Taiwan. The comments were made in a speech on “China’s New Security Initiative” at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore over the weekend.

“You’ve got to take the Chinese at their word, and listen to what the defense minister said, and he wasn’t winging it. This was a very clear, firm statement that China is willing to use force. And so you better take that seriously,” he said.

“I think that China’s objectives are very clear and if they are not challenged, and if we don’t stop aiding and abetting what China is doing, then I think we will find that we are at a point of no return, it may be where we don’t have the wherewithal or the ability physical or psychologically, to resist. I think we’re headed that way,” Newsham said.

Melanie Sun,  Andrew Thornebrooke, and  Katabella Roberts contributed to this report.