The US Navy’s “mission of deterrence” in the Indo-Pacific theater applies to Taiwan, Pacific Fleet Commander Admiral Stephen Koehler told the South China Sea Conference on Tuesday.
The conference, organized by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), is an international platform for senior officials and experts from countries with security interests in the region.
“The Pacific Fleet’s mission is to deter aggression across the Western Pacific, together with our allies and partners, and to prevail in combat if necessary, Koehler said in the event’s keynote speech.
Photo: Reuters
“That mission of deterrence applies regionwide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he added.
China’s unlawful claims in the South China Sea are symptomatic of its broader ambition to establish hegemony over the region, Koehler said.
The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has ramped up deployments and aggressive behavior in the South China Sea, while also conducting exercises simulating an invasion and blockade of Taiwan along the first island chain, he said.
Beijing’s designs extend to Southeast Asian states beyond the first island chain, using increasingly aggressive tactics to “coerce and harass them in their own waters,” he added.
The PLA and the China Coast Guard have employed water cannons, ship-to-ship collisions and lasers, even attacking the crew of a Philippine Navy supply ship with knives and axes last year, Koehler said.
The US Navy and the US Department of Defense regard the Indo-Pacific as “the priority theater,” a stance reflected in the Pacific Fleet’s strength, numbering 200 ships and submarines, 1,300 aircraft, and one-third of its forces deployed at any given time, he said.
Two aircraft carrier strike groups are active in the region: one centered on the USS Nimitz, operating in and around the South China Sea over the past months, and another centered on the USS George Washington, patrolling the western Pacific, the admiral said.
Also speaking at the conference, Japan Institute of International Affairs senior fellow Tetsuo Kotani said Tokyo is developing the “Japan Single Operational Area” strategic concept to strengthen regional defense coordination.
The concept envisions the East China Sea, South China Sea, Korean Peninsula and surrounding waters as a unified theater of military operations in which Japan and its allies act jointly, Kotani said.
However, Indo-Pacific nations would face significant challenges in maintaining peace and stability within this framework if Taiwan remains excluded from regional security arrangements, he said.
The various governments’ continued adherence to Beijing’s “one China” principle makes including Taiwan a difficult proposition, he said.
However, Taiwan should still be allowed to participate as an observer in joint military exercises such as the US-Philippine Exercise Balikatan, Rim of the Pacific (RIMPAC) and other multilateral drills, he added.
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