Top US admiral warns of China threat at Halifax forum
HALIFAX: The head of the US Indo-Pacific Command said Saturday the United States and its allies need to operate with a greater sense of urgency amid rising tensions and China’s increasingly assertive military actions.
Adm John C Aquilino reaffirmed America’s commitment to achieving a free and open Indo-Pacific region during meetings with allies at the Halifax International Security Forum.
“Look at what the Chinese have said. President Xi (Jinping) has tasked his forces to be at a level of military parity with the United States by 2027. Those are his words,” Aquilino said in a meeting with journalists.
Aquilino said the US and its allies need to work together more frequently in international waters to build interoperability so they can operate together quickly if needed.
“We need to deliver capabilities sooner and faster,” he said.
Tensions have heightened as the Chinese military has dispatched an increasing number of fighter jets near the self-ruled island of Taiwan, which Beijing considers part of its territory. China has threatened to use force to unite with it if necessary.
This week Chinese coast guard ships also blocked and sprayed water at two Philippine boats carrying supplies to a disputed South China Sea shoal in a flareup of long-simmering territorial disputes in the waterway.
China claims virtually the entire South China Sea and has transformed seven shoals into missile-protected island bases to cement its assertions, ratcheting up tensions and alarming rival claimants and Western governments led by the US.
President Xi has overseen an assertive foreign policy and expansion of the party’s military wing, the People’s Liberation Army. It has the world’s second-largest military budget after the United States and is developing submarines, stealth aircraft and ballistic missiles.