Eli Ratner, the U.S. Assistant Secretary of Defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, said that China remains the most comprehensive and severe challenge facing U.S. national security.
Ratner issued a statement today before the House of Representatives Indo-Pacific Subcommittee, saying that this is because China remains the only country that is willing and increasingly capable of dominating the Indo-Pacific region and replacing the United States.
“Today, the People’s Republic of China (China) is conducting increasingly coercive activities in the Taiwan Strait (as well as) the South China Sea and the East China Sea, along the Line of Actual Control with India and beyond to pursue its revisionist agenda,” he said. Target.”
Ratner said that conflict in the Indo-Pacific region is neither imminent nor inevitable, and the U.S. Department of Defense is working harder than ever to maintain the current status with the help of U.S. allies and partners.
Admiral John Aquilino , commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command , also said that conflict with China is not imminent or inevitable.
“But our potential adversaries are becoming increasingly aggressive and emboldened,” he said. “China’s unprecedented military buildup and coercive actions continue to destabilize the region and undermine the values and institutions that underpin a free and open Indo-Pacific.” pose a challenge.”
Aquilino said the U.S. Department of Defense must build on the progress made in the Indo-Pacific region over the past few years, including strengthening Guam’s defense system and working to improve bilateral and multilateral cooperation.
