Indo-Pacific Command Chief Says US Is ‘Ready’ to Defend Taiwan

 

US military leaders hype the threat of a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan to justify more military spending

by Dave DeCamp 

Posted onAugust 6, 2021CategoriesNewsTagsChina, Taiwan

The head of US Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM) said Thursday that the US military has the capability to defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion and that it is “ready” to do so at any time.

Adm. John Aquilino told the Aspen Security Forum in Colorado that US “adversaries” are pushing the narrative that the US and its military are in decline. “I want to be very clear — we have the world’s greatest military on the planet,” he said. “We are here to continue to operate to ensure peace and prosperity through the region, and we have to be in a position to ensure that status quo remains as it applies to Taiwan.”

US Indo-Pacific Command’s area of operations

Tensions are high between the US and China over Taiwan. The US has stepped up its military activity near the island, is taking steps to boost diplomatic relations, and continues to sell weapons to Taipei. This week, the Biden administration approved its first arms sale to Taiwan, $750 million worth of howitzers and related equipment.

Discussing a potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan, Aquilino said, “The US is ready for any contingency should it occur.” The INDOPACOM chief said the US would use the concept known as “integrated deterrence” in such an event, which means the combination of all warfighting domains, including space and cyber. “So, when we pull all those together, let me just say that I have a level of confidence that the US military and Department of Defense is in a good place,” he said.

Aquilino and other US military leaders in the Pacific have an interest in hyping up the threat of China moving to take Taiwan by force. His command has been selling Congress on the Pacific Deterrence (PDI), a plan to spend over $27 billion between 2022 and 2027 to boost US military capabilities in the region. President Biden’s Pentagon budget request for 2022 includes $5.1 billion for the PDI.

https://news.antiwar.com/2021/08/06/indo-pacific-command-chief-says-us-is-ready-to-defend-taiwan/