Trump’s Chief Strategist Has ‘No Doubt’ the U.S. Will Go to War With China

The former executive chair of Breitbart News, who remains controversial for his ties to White Nationalist movements, said on his radio show in March 2016 that the two nations may butt heads over the South China Sea in the next decade.

“We’re going to war in the South China Sea in five to 10 years, aren’t we?” said Bannon. “There’s no doubt about that. They’re taking their sandbars and making basically stationary aircraft carriers and putting missiles on those. They come here to the United States in front of our face — and you understand how important face is — and say it’s an ancient territorial sea.”

Tensions between China and the U.S., as well as other countries like Japan, have escalated over the past few years over ownership of that part of the Pacific Ocean, according to the Independent.

China has asserted possession of the marginal sea by creating large islands capable of receiving military aircraft and installing military weapons.

Last week, a senior Chinese military official said that war between the two countries is becoming a “practical reality.”

The same official pushed for increased military in the East and South China Seas to protect the area.

“‘A war within the president’s term’ or ‘war breaking out tonight’ are not just slogans, they are becoming a practical reality,” the official was quoted as saying in the South China Morning Post.

Trump’s anti-Chinese rhetoric has made the bilateral relationship more dangerous.

One of the focal points of Trump’s presidential campaign included labeling China as a currency manipulator.

Bannon caused some controversy over the weekend after he was appointed to the White House National Security Council of which only senior generals usually sit.

The assistant to the president has previously compared himself to Russian Communist Party founder Vladimir Lenin.

Bannon reportedly said that the Russian leader “wanted to destroy the state, and that’s my goal too. I want to bring everything crashing down, and destroy all of today’s establishment.”

Image via Flickr / Don Irvine