China Tests The One

The Chinese are once again playing a dangerous game:

WASHINGTON (AP) - Chinese ships surrounded and harassed a Navy mapping ship in international waters off China, at one point coming within 25 feet of the American boat and strewing debris in its path, the Defense Department said Monday. The Obama administration said it would continue naval operations in the South China Sea, most of which China considers its territory, and protested to China about what it called reckless behavior that endangered lives.

At one point during the incident Sunday the unarmed USNS Impeccable turned fire hoses on an approaching Chinese ship in self defense, the Pentagon said. At another point a Chinese ship played chicken with the Americans, stopping dead in front of the Impeccable as it tried to sail away, forcing the civilian mariners to slam on the brakes.

"We view these as unprofessional maneuvers" and a violation of international law, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said.

The incident had overtones of spycraft, but the U.S. ship is not, strictly speaking, a spy ship. It maps the ocean floor with sonar, compiling information the Navy can use to steer its own submarines or track those of other nations.

This is nothing new for the Chinese. You may remember on April 2, 2001, in the early pre-9/11 days of the Bush Administration, a Chinese fighter aircraft collided with and damaged a U.S. surveillance plane. The aircraft ended up being forced to land and the crew was held in captivity for a number of days.

The Chinese are testing the rookie president.