The top US military commander in Asia, Admiral Timothy Keating, on Monday described as "troublesome" China's developments of weapons intended to deny US forces access to areas such as the Taiwan Strait, saying that such weapons "exceed" Beijing's contention that its rapid military buildup program is only defensive.
Without mentioning the Strait, and phrasing his comments in a very careful and circumspect way, Keating talked about the People's Republic of China's (PRC) weapons aimed to deny US forces' access to "certain areas on the sea, in the air, or under the sea," a clear reference to Chinese advances in submarines, missiles, aircraft and warships.
Keating made his comments in response to questions by reporters after a speech on security in the Asia-Pacific region at an Asia Society luncheon in Washington.
PHOTO: CNA
Couching his remarks carefully in words that are "standardly public," but which he said are backed by secret intelligence, Keating complained that "China is developing, fielding and has in place weapons that could be characterized as having amongst, perhaps, other purposes, the ability to restrict movement in and around certain areas on the sea, in the air, or under the sea."
The question about such weaponry, Keating said, is "not just the fact that these weapons exist -- we know they exist -- it's why are they being fielded."
"The PRC says, `we only want to protect those things that are ours.' We find it troubling that the capabilities of some of these weapons systems would tend to exceed our own expectations for protecting those things that are `ours,'" he said.
Keating said that the Chinese leaders he met during a trip to China last May said that the military buildup was aimed only to protect what is "ours," and does not have any expansionist or aggressive purposes.
His comments echoed those of last summer's report by the Pentagon on China's military programs that found that a key aim of its military buildup was to deny the US the ability to come to Taipei's aid in case of Chinese military aggression against Taiwan.
Keating also issued a veiled warning to China not to repeat an incident that occurred in October 2006, when a Chinese Song-class diesel-powered attack submarine surfaced within 8km of the Kitty Hawk aircraft carrier and its task force in the Pacific, warning that such an encounter could result in armed conflict.
Asked by a Taiwanese reporter about Beijing's submarine development efforts, Keating said: "We watch carefully the development of tactics, techniques and procedures by countries in the region, including China."
"When a Chinese submarine surfaces within sight of a United States aircraft carrier ... situations could develop where if it's night and the weather is bad and there's an increased state of tension," Keating said.
"I'm not suggesting there will be, but if there is increased tension for whatever reason, and a submarine comes up close to your ship, you might begin to take actions which could lead to possibly some sort of circumstances," he said.
He used the incident to underscore his and the Pentagon's long held demand that China be more transparent about its military buildup and its intentions.
"If we understand intentions, not just that they are transparent," he said, "we are convinced that the likelihood of misunderstanding that could lead to confusion, that could lead to crisis, it could lead to conflict, we think the likelihood is much lower."
Discussing his trip to China earlier this month, in which Taiwan came up in all his meetings with top military and civilian officials, Keating said that in each of those meetings "the tone was less strident, less confrontational" than his first visit there as US Pacific commander.
He credited this to the fact that "they know us a little better, they've heard the homily, the sermon before."
"It helps us to be able to repeat with accuracy that the United States has had the same policy with respect to China and Taiwan since 1979. So the People's Republic of China, I believe, understands our position better today than they did 10 months ago," he said.
The Thai government on Friday announced that Taiwanese would be allowed to stay in the country for up to 60 days per entry, under the Southeast Asian country’s visa-free program starting from today. Taiwan is among 93 countries included in the Thai visa-waiver program, which has been expanded from 57 countries, with the visa-exempt entry extended from 30 to 60 days. After taking office last year, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin has vowed to grant more visa waivers to foreign travelers as part of efforts to stimulate tourism. The expanded visa-waiver program was on Friday signed by Thai Minister of the Interior Anutin
BAIL APPEALS: The former vice premier was ordered to be held incommunicado despite twice being granted bail and paying a total of NT$12 million in bond The Taoyuan District Court yesterday ordered the detention of former vice premier Cheng Wen-tsan (鄭文燦), who is being investigated for alleged corruption while serving as Taoyuan mayor from December 2014 to December 2022, and that he be held incommunicado. The court made the ruling during a bail hearing after prosecutors appealed its bail ruling twice. Cheng on Saturday was released after posting bail of NT$5 million (US$153,818). However, after prosecutors lodged an appeal, the High Court on Monday revoked the original ruling and ordered the Taoyuan District Court to hold another bail hearing. On Tuesday, the district court granted bail to Cheng a second
PEACE AND SECURITY: China’s military ambitions present ‘the greatest strategic challenge to Japan and the world, Japan’s annual defense white paper said yesterday Japan yesterday warned that China risked escalating tensions with Taiwan with an increase in military exercises that appeared aimed in part at readying Beijing’s forces for a possible invasion. Japan’s annual assessment of security threats, including those posed by China, North Korea and Russia, comes as Taiwan closely monitors Chinese People’s Liberation Army air and sea exercises, including one with the Shandong aircraft carrier in the Pacific Ocean. The drills are the latest in a series including maneuvers in the Taiwan Strait last year that a senior US general said would be key to any invasion. “Because of that increase in military activity,
HAN KUANG: The exercises, which are to run from July 22 to 26, will feature unscripted war games and a decentralized command and control structure, military officers said The armed forces would for the first time test new rules of engagement (ROE) at this month’s annual Han Kuang exercises, the Ministry of National Defense (MND) said yesterday. The exercises, which are to run from July 22 to 26, will feature unscripted war games, and a decentralized command and control structure, military officers told a news conference in Taipei. ROE cards would be issued to select combat troops to test their ability to function without tight control, they said. The most recent edition of the rules was published last year, they said. One of the cards’ two templates identifies enemy targets that soldiers