For the past few years, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has been boasting about its “Red Flag-9B” (HQ-9B) missile system as the best air defense system. However, in less than a year, the “Red Flag-9B” missile system has faced embarrassing failures in countries like Pakistan, Venezuela, and Iran, becoming a laughingstock on the international stage.
Former Nicaraguan ambassador to the Organization of American States and exiled journalist Arturo McFields pointed out in a recent article in The Hill that the United States still possesses the most modern and formidable military power in the world, a fact proven by President Trump.
The article highlighted how the US and Israeli military forces swiftly neutralized the military leadership in Iran and captured the top leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei within a day, as well as apprehended the authoritarian Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro in just a day.
In contrast, the article mentioned former President George H.W. Bush taking several days to arrest the Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega and nearly a decade to track down and kill terrorist leader Osama Bin Laden.
Despite the groundbreaking operations by the US military under the leadership of the Trump administration in Venezuela’s “Operation Absolute Resolve” and Iran’s “Epic Fury Operation,” McFields expressed disappointment that few were applauding these achievements.
The article criticized the CCP for showcasing its “Red Flag-9B” missiles and JY-27A radar systems at military parades to intimidate, yet in actual combat situations, they proved to be as ineffective as paper tigers when faced with US military strikes, resembling blind, deaf, and mute entities.
The “Red Flag-9B” is considered a cheap replica of the powerful US Patriot missile and Russian S-300 air defense systems. Theoretically, the “Red Flag-9B” is equipped with radar systems capable of tracking and attacking multiple targets simultaneously, but in reality, it has been powerless in combat situations.
Since May last year, the “Red Flag-9B” missile system has suffered from devastating defeats. It failed to defend, destroy, or track targets during India’s “Operation Sindoor” against Pakistan for four consecutive days.
Similarly, the CCP’s JY-27 radar system, boasting the ability to identify and scan targets within a range of 280 to 390 kilometers, specifically designed to detect early threats from high-speed supersonic F-22 and F-35 jets, failed to detect a single aircraft intruding into Venezuelan airspace during the US military operation that captured Maduro, once again tarnishing the CCP’s reputation.
In the “Operation Absolute Resolve” in Venezuela, the CCP’s staunch ally Russia also faced humiliation. The Russian-made S-300 missile system, purchased by Venezuela for over 2 billion dollars, although powerful, was completely overwhelmed by the US’s formidable fighter jets, bombers, and electronic warfare aircraft. In Iran’s “Epic Fury Operation,” the CCP’s “Red Flag-9B” missile defense system proved to be futile, leading to the annihilation of Khamenei and around 49 senior military officials by the US military.
The article highlighted that in less than a year, CCP’s touted strong military technology has turned into a mockery and disgrace under the overpowering might of the US military. Countries like Egypt, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, and Iran, which spent billions on purchasing CCP’s air defense systems, now regret their decisions.
The setbacks faced by Pakistan, Venezuela, and Iran offer Taiwan a glimmer of hope. Through several wars, CCP’s reputation has been tarnished, and the arms race no longer appears as intimidating as before. Although still a nuclear power, compared to the US military, CCP’s combat techniques and radars have proven unreliable, extremely fragile, and poorly constructed.
Unlike these countries, Latin American nations like Peru, Argentina, and Uruguay have opted for US military technology. Argentina and Peru chose supersonic F-16 fighter jets over the CCP’s JF-17 (Thunder) aircraft, while Uruguay purchased powerful Oshkosh 4×4 armored vehicles, steering clear of Chinese-made weapons.
The achievements in the Iranian conflict are unprecedented, rallying many European and Arab countries together to collectively combat the terrorism threat posed by Iran. All of these advancements are attributed to the strong and decisive leadership of the Trump administration.
The article concluded by emphasizing that while the CCP currently maintains some economic support on the surface, the United States possesses comprehensive military, economic, and political strength. Presently, the US is leveraging these advantages to reshape the world order, not driven by impulse but by composing a symphony of strength for peace.