Government

Learn About the Hypothetical ‘War Games’ the U.S. & China Have Been Playing

U.S. and China Engage in War Games to Discuss Cyber Attacks

(Photo: AP)

Some say evidence has been mounting that China has been involved in cyber attacks against U.S. government agencies and companies. In fact, last year a security company linked China to nearly 50 attacks on U.S. chemical and defense companies. More recently, a former counterterrorism official said nearly every U.S. company has in some way been infiltrated by China.

China has denied such attacks.

All this news can be frustrating for both parties involved, and the Guardian has found the U.S. is doing something about it — and so is China. The two countries, the Guardian reports, have been engaging in “war games” in order to facilitate contact over “hypothetical” situations in a “less formal environment.”

Organized by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), a think-tank in Washington, D.C., and the China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, a think-tank in Beijing, the Guardian explains so far two “wars” have taken place with a third planned for May. It states this is considered ”Track 1.5″ diplomacy, which is “the closest governments can get in conflict management without full-blown talks.”

Here‘s what’s gone down thus far according to the Guardian:

“We co-ordinate the war games with the state department and department of defence,” said Lewis, who brokered the meetings, which took place in Beijing last June, and in Washington in December.

“The officials start out as observers and become participants … it is very much the same on the Chinese side. Because it is organised between two thinktanks they can speak more freely.”

During the first exercise, both sides had to describe what they would do if they were attacked by a sophisticated computer virus, such as Stuxnet, which disabled centrifuges in Iran’s nuclear programme. In the second, they had to describe their reaction if the attack was known to have been launched from the other side.

Popular Science describes this as an interesting tactic to try and prevent attacks. It states that it’s like saying “we know you won’t do it, China, but just in case, here’s what we’d do to you.”

The Guardian reports Lewis saying the first war game went well and the second “not so well.” He states the Chinese believe they have been treated unfairly and distrust the U.S. In the games, Lewis said, the U.S. tries to find ways to change the Chinese’s behavior, but the Chinese “justify what they are doing.”

The Guardian contacted the state department about the war games, which they didn’t speak of outright, but a spokesperson did say the U.S is “engaging broadly with the Chinese government on cyber issues so that we can find common ground.” The Pentagon also declined to comment on the games.

On the flip side, the Guardian reports China’s defense minister Liang Guanglie saying the country is against any sort of cyber attacks, denying they country’s involvement in any attacks against the United States or its companies, and claiming China itself has seen its fair share of cyber attacks of late.

(Related: ‘Breaching the great firewall’: Anonymous hacks hundreds of Chinese government websites)

Read more about the role-playing war games occurring between the two countries here.

Comments (30)

  • CommanderKoolAid
    Posted on April 28, 2012 at 3:22pm

    http://drinkyourkoolaid.com/congress-and-the-irs-want-to-come-after-the-18-trillion-sitting-in-401k-accounts/
    this is how US will fund China’s growing military

    Report Post » CommanderKoolAid  
  • CommanderKoolAid
    Posted on April 28, 2012 at 3:21pm

    http://drinkyourkoolaid.com/congress-and-the-irs-want-to-come-after-the-18-trillion-sitting-in-401k-accounts/

    Report Post » CommanderKoolAid  
  • labar
    Posted on April 27, 2012 at 5:10pm

    I seem to remember reading about a study that the CSIS had done a study early on in the Obama administration about how to handle a civil unrest crises. They had determined the type of forces needed, how many would be needed, where they could be recruited from, where and how they would be trained, needless to say it was a thorough study done to supply Obama with everything a dictator would need to control their population. I was shocked to stumble upon it and bookmarked the page so I could forward it to sites like this, but the hard drive failed on the computer it was on and I’ve never been able to find that article again. The military channel does broadcast lots of WWII programs
    that spell out how Hitler rose to power, and I see very little difference in how he consolidated power from what Obama is currently trying to do. The first thing Hitler did was to take control of Health Care! Obama is our greatest threat and the Republican members of congress are completely clueless about it. If Obama declares martial law, I‘m afraid it’s all over for this once great country.

    Report Post »  
  • Mormyo
    Posted on April 23, 2012 at 9:52am

    cant we just ban there ip’s from the service providers

    Report Post »  
  • VanceUppercut
    Posted on April 19, 2012 at 3:30pm

    Is Matthew Broderick involved in any way?

    Report Post »  
  • jtm45
    Posted on April 19, 2012 at 3:25am

    Hypothetical? no,its going on now. they buy up all the scrap metal and turn it into guns,bullets,ships,bombs,airplanes WAKE UP PEOPLE!

    Report Post » jtm45  
  • arty6164
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 8:21pm

    Tic-tac-toe anyone?

    Report Post »  
    • wntsmallgov
      Posted on April 19, 2012 at 12:20am

      Nice but people do not remember things like that or even the book 1984.

      Report Post » wntsmallgov  
  • dont_drive_slow_in_the_left_lane_obliviot
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 6:00pm

    and who here thinks either side is really revealing what they would do? all this tells you is what they wouldn’t do. the Chinese only speak in lies, I’m not sure they have a word for truth .

    Report Post » dont_drive_slow_in_the_left_lane_obliviot  
  • Shamrock241
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 3:18pm

    Glenn Beck is always so quick to jump on the Russians,like blaming them for this latest story with the SS and then one of his own insiders was on his show yesterday and blew that theory out of the water. China spends alot more money on there military than Russia, and we know how Computer Tech savy they are, i would keep a much closer eye on china.

    Report Post »  
    • BlackCrow
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 4:43pm

      The Russians maintain the worlds largest stockpile of nuclear weapons and as their conventional forces decrease their reliance on those weapons becomes more and more a centerpiece of their national defense. The red horde may not threating to come pouring through the Fulda gap but their missiles can still fly over the pole.They are not to be discounted.

      Report Post » BlackCrow  
  • Pearsontech
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 3:16pm

    can’t understand why the US or China would even want to do this. Why reveal your hand in a game of poker?

    Report Post »  
    • HorseCrazy
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 7:36pm

      because its total manure. they have been hacking us and stealing for years not to mention they own us. this story is all posturing.

      Report Post »  
  • HorseCrazy
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:55pm

    not buying this story. ofcouse their has been hacking going on but this isn’t the full story. china is a great danger to our country and we will never know the extent of what they have planned.

    Report Post »  
  • Mutiny
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:32pm

    I dont like the idea of telling them what we would do. I do believe warfare has changed. We dont need large battalions of troops and tanks taking over areas anymore. I believe a new real war will have a lot of air power, navy, missiles, and cyber warfare.

    Report Post » Mutiny  
    • 82dAirborne
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:48pm

      Do you belive we would tell them the truth about what we would do? The truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?

      Report Post » 82dAirborne  
    • Marci
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:48pm

      What a bunch of b.s. to cover up that China pretty much owns us.

      Report Post » Marci  
    • 82dAirborne
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:50pm

      On second thought – this POTUS probably would!!

      Report Post » 82dAirborne  
    • Dismayed Veteran
      Posted on April 19, 2012 at 3:01pm

      @Mutiny

      Wars are won by boots on the ground. Someone always has to go in up close and personal. Battles may be won with technology but not wars.

      Why does the military still teach and use drill and ceremony? Sure it looks nice on the parade ground and it turns a bunch of recruits from a gaggle into a military unit. But the true and sole purpose is the to get the Soldier, Human (1) each from Point A to Point B in battle order. If all the fancy gadgets we have now fail and we must still prosecute a war, humans are the one technology that can still work.

      I am not knocking the Air Force and Navy. But the Army and the Marines know that when the rubber hits the road, they will be at the pointy end of the shitstick.

      Report Post » Dismayed Veteran  
  • Nickallsopp
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:15pm

    I’m a gamer, i love playing video game especially war and military related game, but i’ll tell you all it starting to get suspicious on why there are so many games that have hypothetical conflicts between the US and China. Case in point Operation Flashpoint. I am a fan of both games but they both involve a hostile Chinese force that US Marines must defeat, and these game are about as close to real combat as you can get without actually going there.Suspicious? Definitely as well as the Fallout Series a futuristic apocolypse game after the United States went to war with China and the world destroyed after both sides went nuclear. Now for some reason I’ve been hearing about actual War games between the US and China. I Don’t know about anyone else but it seems almost like both sides are advocating war between US and China. I sure hope that isn’t the case though.

    Report Post » Nickallsopp  
    • vox_populi
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:19pm

      They’re just a convenient enemy. All the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare games have Russia as the enemy, despite the fact we’ve never really been to war with them (well, except the intervention in the 1917 Revolution, but that was a little different). Who else would they put on the other side of the guns? Britain? Germany? None of these really make sense as US military opponents anywhere in the near future.

      Report Post » vox_populi  
    • Delta D-5-3
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:42pm

      Here’s a novel idea. Why don’t why CALL OUT China EVERYTIME they hack and infiltrate defence, government, and defence contractor websites??? BUT WE WON’T, because our government hasn’t the ba!!s. AND CHINA KNOWS THIS!! So, lets just wargame and see how the other will respond in a real attack. Yea, great idea.

      Report Post » Delta D-5-3  
    • Polarized America
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:44pm

      may i suggest that you should try fishing

      real fishing not video fishing

      Report Post »  
    • lukerw
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:46pm

      From the Military stand point of view… 40% Casualities are Winning… even if a Nation cannot operate an Economy. And, it does not matter whom is the Enemy… kiss both Coasts good bye!

      Report Post » lukerw  
  • vox_populi
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:12pm

    “Let’s play Global Thermonuclear War…”

    Report Post » vox_populi  
    • lukerw
      Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:20pm

      I wrote a game like that… in Europe… back in the 70′s… using NATO info!

      Report Post » lukerw  
  • lukerw
    Posted on April 18, 2012 at 2:00pm

    So, if a Dictator were to arise in America… which Nation would he ask for Support… to control the population: Russia or China?

    Report Post » lukerw  

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