Admiral Stephen Koehler, commander of the US Pacific Fleet, on Tuesday said that the fleet’s mission to deter aggression in the South China Sea encompasses Taiwan.
Koehler was speaking at the 15th annual Center for Strategic and International Studies’ South China Sea Conference in Hawaii on Tuesday.
Seeking hegemony in the region, China has “increased its deployments and aggressive tactics in the South China Sea,” and “intensified its rehearsals for invasion and blockade of Taiwan,” he said.
Photo: AP
The US 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.
“That mission of deterrence applies region-wide — including the South China Sea and Taiwan,” he said. “A conflict or crisis in either place would threaten the interests of countries across the region.”
There are two Pacific Fleet carrier strike groups operating in the region: the USS Nimitz, which has been operating in and around the South China Sea for the past few months, and the USS George Washington, which is based in Japan and has been patrolling the Western Pacific, Koehler said.
The USS Tripoli amphibious assault ship is heading to its new base in Sasebo, Japan, and the USS America Amphibious Readiness Group is in Australia for the biannual Talisman Sabre exercise, he added.
In the coming year, China can be expected “to continue to try to divide and pressure Southeast Asian countries over the South China Sea,” he said.
Tetsuo Kotani, a senior fellow at the Japan Institute of International Affairs, said that Japan is promoting the concept of a “single theater,” viewing the four major conflict points in East Asia as one major challenge to encourage allied nations to respond together.
Without Taiwan’s participation, Indo-Pacific countries would not be able to guarantee peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait or the East and South China Seas, Kotani said.
Due to Beijing's so-called “one China” principle, it is challenging for countries to engage in military cooperation with Taiwan, he said.
Kotani invited Taiwan to observe joint military drills, such as the Balikatan and Rim of the Pacific exercises, so that other countries’ militaries have more opportunities to interact with the nation.
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