Re:To protect against weaponized drones, we must understand ...
by nradov on Tuesday June 08, 2021 @09:26PM
(#27443192)
The US Navy is big enough to impose a fairly effective blockade on China for an extended period. All they have to do is drop a few mines near Chinese ports and shipping labels. Marine insurers will then decline coverage for all merchant vessels in those waters, making it impossible for neutrals to operate. The Chinese could still accept the risk and run their own flagged ships through but overall trade would be greatly reduced.
Most of the simulations for a naval war around Taiwan predict that it would be over in a few days, maybe weeks, but not long enough to really draw down those reserves.
Most importantly, it's really not realistic that the US Navy could prevent the rest of planet Earth from providing goods to the world's largest trading nation. Our navy isn't big enough, for one thing, but the economic damage to every other country that imports into China makes this blockade idea pretty unrealistic. I can't even imagine how much inflation would spike when the world's factory can't export for a few weeks