How much does the US owe China?

Could China financial ruin the US if they decided to suddenly? Do they have this power now?

If China sees that the US Military is strained in the wars on the Middle East, could they attack the US if they wanted to winning the battle?

Could they do a systematic challenge like first financially ruining the government and then attack with weapons?

What do you think the Chinesse governments position is concerning the relationship between the two nations?

Concerning the first question I found this. What are your thoughts on it?

According to Ron Paul, a member of the house banking committee, we owe China about 2 & 1/2 trillion American dollars.

China gets American dollars when they sell us stuff made in China. Instead of sitting on the dollars they buy American interest bearing Treasury Bills & Treasury Bonds, which would have different maturity dates. These Gvt. issues can also be rolled over when the maturity date arrives.

It's a distinct possibility that it may never be paid off or paid back because the numbers are so high.

These American dollar debt obligations can be sold or traded by China at any time provided a buyer is found.

If the Fed is ordered by Congress to buy them back, it would probably be at a very deeply discounted price, which would show the worlds bankers exactly how unsound dollars have become.
If the Fed buys huge amounts of Treasury debt, it can be assumed the national debt {about 9 trillion dollars} would be owed to the Fed, which apparently is owned by the wealthiest bankers in the world, not the American people.

Now do you see why Ron Paul wants to abolish the Fed?

Foreign owners of US Treasury Securities (January 2009)

Nation billions of dollars percentage

Mainland China 739.6 = 24.07%
Japan 634.8 20.66%
Oil exporters 186.3 6.06%
Carribean banking centers 176.6 5.75%
Brazil 133.5 4.35%
United Kingdom 124.2 4.04%
Russia 119.6 3.89%
Luxembourg 87.2 2.84%
Taiwan 73.3 2.39%
Hong Kong 71.7 2.33%
Switzerland 62.1 2.02%
Germany 56.4 1.84%
Ireland 50 1.63%
Singapore 38.3 1.25%
Thailand 37.2 1.21%
Mexico 34.9 1.14%
India 32.5 1.06%
Turkey 31.3 1.02%
Korea 31.3 1.02%
Norway 21.9 0.71%
France 17.9 0.58%
Israel 16.9 0.55%
Egypt 16.9 0.55%
Netherlands 16.8 0.55%
Italy 15.6 0.51%
Belgium 15.5 0.50%
Chile 15.2 0.49%
Sweden 12.4 0.40%
Philippines 11.6 0.38%
Colombia 11.3 0.37%
All other 179.4 5.84%

Grand Total 3072.2

I made a post on this a few weeks back. Essentially, once China has enough of our debt, they can institute a world currency. it's not exactly that simple, but that's the gist.

so yes, they can put enormous strain on our financial system or entirely revamp it if we fall to much more into debt. Especially if a world currency becomes a part of an agreement to continue lending.

We are in a serious catch-22. We have a certain amount of money coming into the government but it is not enough. We therefore borrow. Doing so, the interest amounts rise as our debt rises. This cuts more and more from our original income and we therefore have to borrow more, increasing interest payments even more.

Three outs: fiscal responsibility (ha!), default or inflation. Neither of the last two will have desirable results, I assure you, and the first is not going to happen with any of the politicians (short of Dr. Paul and a handfull of others) in Washington.

We owe China roughly 1 trillion dollars!

Thank you for the answers, but could you answer the other questions I have on the thread?

It would be interesting to see your prespective on them.