This is Frank Gaffney with the Secure Freedom Minute.

Another merchant ship under the control of the Chinese Communist Party has apparently been responsible for cutting an important piece of undersea infrastructure. On this occasion the location was close to home, in waters near a Taiwanese island. And, as has been the case as far away as the Baltic Sea, the damage was done by the vessel’s anchor to a key fiber optic cable. Sometimes, the disruption was to an energy pipeline.

National security sophisticates describe such incidents as “gray zone” actions, meaning they don’t rise to the level of actual warfare. But that is just a rationale justifying inaction on the part of the nations impacted.

In fact, these are acts of war. They are part of a military doctrine that calls for “shaping the battlefield” in preparation for hostilities and can confer a possibly decisive advantage on the perpetrating party.

In a memo on Friday, President Trump described the Chinese Communist Party’s PRC as a “foreign adversary.” He has initiated financial warfare steps aimed at ending our underwriting of this enemy. They can’t be implemented soon enough.

This is Frank Gaffney.