Deterring China from launching military action such as invading Taiwan is the US’s main regional priority, a top American commander says, while warning Beijing cannot be the sole focus as North Korea ramps up its missile program and Russia maintains a strong naval fleet in the Pacific.
Deputy head of US Indo-Pacific Command Stephen Sklenka said his belief was Chinese President Xi Jinping understood that the benefits from invading Taiwan were far exceeded by the costs and would be detrimental to his rule.
China’s President Xi Jinping (right) is not the only leader of concern in Asia, officials say. North Korea’s Kim Jong-un (pictured with Vladimir Putin) should also be a focus. AP
“All actions we do in the Indo-Pacific are designed with the principal fundamental objective to cause Xi to pause and say ‘No, not today’,” Lieutenant-General Sklenka told an Australian Strategic Policy Institute conference on Thursday. “As long as we can keep doing that, we will be blessed with success.”
He noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin hosting North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un in Vladivostok this week came after Mr Putin and Mr Xi had bolstered ties.
“If your two best friends are Xi and KJU [Mr Kim], you might want to think about new friends,” he said.
General Sklenka said North Korea launched three times more missiles last year compared to 2019, and one “errant” missile landing somewhere like Tokyo or Seoul would be disastrous.
Defence Minister Richard Marles told the same conference the US needed to be encouraged to remain engaged in the Indo-Pacific to preserve stability, amid the possible return of an isolationist Donald Trump to the White House.
Mr Marles revealed Australian officials had begun reaching out to potential US presidential candidates to reinforce the importance of the US-Australian alliance and shore up the AUKUS nuclear-powered submarine pact.
While the US, with its military power and network of alliances, is seen as a crucial check against Chinese belligerency, doubts over its commitment have been revived in some quarters after President Joe Biden skipped last week’s East Asian Summit, the region’s premier leader-level security dialogue.
Mr Marles acknowledged there were different tendencies, including isolationism within the US political system over America’s willingness to take on the mantle of global leadership.
“I think it is a time where it is really important that friends and allies of the United States are reminding – not reminding, that’s the wrong word – encouraging America to continue to play its role and fulfil the American project,” he said.
Uncertainty also lingers over the transfer of nuclear-powered submarine technology to Australia. While AUKUS has bipartisan support in the US Congress, some Republican senators have raised concerns the sale of submarines will detract from the US Navy’s submarine fleet.
But Mr Marles said that, in conversations with US legislators and potential presidential candidates, the importance of AUKUS was accepted.
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