COMMENTARY_ What the Chinese learned from America’s raid on Venezuela (Michael McKenna - THE WASHINGTON TIMES)

THE WASHINGTON TIMES

What the Chinese learned from America’s raid on Venezuela

U.S. military superiority may delay Beijing's worst ambitions


China and the United States of America’s military illustration by Alexander Hunter/The Washington Times more >

COMMENTARY 

By Michael McKenna - Sunday, January 11, 2026

OPINION:

In our 50-year-long twilight struggle with the Soviet Union, it was often said — especially by those who leaned politically rightward — that the U.S. overestimated the capabilities of the Russians and consistently underestimated their threat.

It was a short way of communicating that the Red Army looked a lot more imposing than it really was, but at the same time, the goals of the Russians were more ambitious than we appreciated.

The recent strike on Venezuela made me think about that bit of received wisdom.

It has been reported that the U.S. armed forces involved in the attack on Caracas included the Delta Force, the USS Gerald R. Ford carrier group, B-1 bombers, F-35s, F-22s, F/A-18s and on and on. On the other side were Venezuelan forces outfitted with Chinese and Russian equipment specifically designed and intended to prevent airplanes from flying over one’s nation. Those systems obviously failed.

More specifically, the Chinese radar system that failed is the JY-27A system that the slaving, genocidal communist regime in China pitched to its clients in Caracas as being able to detect stealthy aircraft. That’s important if you’re trying to keep stealth jets (such as the F-35 and F-22) and stealthy bombers (such as the B-1 and B-2 and eventually the B-21) out of your airspace and away from your soldiers or facilities on the ground.

On Jan. 3, however, it became obvious that the Chinese system and the Russian missile defense systems were of very limited value compared with American hardware, soldiers, airmen and sailors.

In the wake of the successful attack by the United States, there has been a lot of talk about who might be next and which nations should be nervous. Cuba? Sure. Colombia? Eventually. Iran? Always.

The commentariat, with notable exceptions (including The Washington Times’ own Bill Gertz), failed to point out that the crew that should be most nervous is the Chinese Communist Party. China is rapidly coming to some sort of decision about how and when to jump across the Formosa Strait and invade Taiwan. Such a move would bring it into immediate conflict with the United States (and our allies in Japan, the Philippines and Australia).

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READ MORE: https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2026/jan/11/chinese-learned-americas-raid-venezuela/

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