The commander of Anderson Air Force Base in Guam responded Friday (Sept. 25) to the recent release of a video of what appeared to be a mock attack on the base by the Chinese Air Force, saying it was Chinese “propaganda” designed to coerce and provoke the United States. The commander said that U.S. military exercises near Guam are proceeding as usual.
Air Force Brig. Gen. Jeremy T. Sloane, commander of Guam’s Anderson Air Force Base in the Pacific, said Friday in a conference call with the media about the ongoing U.S. military exercise “Valiant Shield” near Guam that the Chinese Air Force recently released a video of what appears to be a mock bombing of Guam. The video responds.
“This is a propaganda video …… While we are always concerned about protecting our island and our people, this video itself is pure propaganda designed to coerce and anger us.”
The video shows a Boom-6 bomber, which can carry nuclear warheads, taking off from the base and flying over the desert before firing missiles at the target. The video shows satellite images of the base that are similar to Anderson, but does not directly mention the base by name.
Brigadier General Sloan said the timing of the video’s release suggests they were aware of the timing of the U.S. military exercise.
The Chinese Air Force’s Weibo account posted the video, called “My name is Ares,” on September 19. The U.S. military’s major biennial exercises near Guam lasted from September 14 to September 25.
The Chinese government has yet to comment on the video. To the amusement of some Chinese netizens, some of the footage in the video was apparently taken from Hollywood blockbusters like “Transformers: The Revenge of the Fallen.
Sloan said the exercise went ahead as usual because “it is designed to ensure that we are well-trained and prepared to conduct operations in the Indo-Pacific region and to support our allies and partners.
Guam is home to a number of major U.S. military installations, including Anderson Air Force Base. It is key to the U.S. response to any conflict in the Asia-Pacific region.
On the same day that the Chinese Air Force released that video, the Chinese military conducted a second day of military exercises near Taiwan. The exercise was an expression of outrage over a visit to Taipei by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Crunch.
Taiwan’s Air Force says the Boom-6 has been involved in several missions around and near Taiwan, including last week’s exercise.
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