Preventing a Chinese invasion of Taiwan at any point this decade will be an 'enormous challenge,' according to a top Department of Defense official.
Preventing a Chinese invasion of Taiwan at any point this decade will be an"enormous challenge," according to a top Department of Defense official.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping has said he wants the military prepared to invade Taiwan and take it by force by 2027, though it's not definite that they will invade then, defense officials said. Lt. Gen. Charles Flynn, commander of U.S. Army Pacific, implied earlier this week, however, that the PLA's actions are suggestive of preparing for an offensive.
"There has been an uptick in terms of particularly when it comes to air of these types of activities. Secretary Austin personally spoke to his counterpart back in November, when we were in Cambodia, on this topic," Brig. Gen. Patrick Ryder, the top Pentagon spokesman, said on Thursday.
Earlier this week, the U.S. announced a proposed arms sale to Taiwan valued at more than $600 million that will include hundreds of missiles for F-16 fighter jets, in a move that was quickly denounced by the Chinese Foreign Ministry. The defense department is also planning to deploy between 100 and 200 troops to Taiwan in the next couple of months, a move that could ultimately quadruple its presence of about 30 last year, the Wall Street Journal reported last week.
The Ministry of National Defense declined a call between Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and PRC Minister of National Defense Wei Fenghe the day the U.S. shot down the surveillance balloon, which has largely been recovered and is being studied, which the Chinese claim was a commercial meteorological balloon.
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