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US defense secretary praises cross-strait tiesCNA June 3, 2012, 12:06 am TWN    In his remarks, Panetta rejected the idea that the increased emphasis is a kind of challenge to China and said that “increased U.S. involvement in this region will benefit China as it advances our shared security and prosperity for the future.” In that context, he said, “we strongly support the efforts that both China and Taiwan have made in recent years trying to improve cross-strait relations.” The defense secretary also noted the United States' “enduring interest in peace and stability” in the Strait, while making it clear that Washington “remains firm in the adherence to a one-China policy based on the Three Communiques and the Taiwan Relations Act.” At the forum, called the Shangri-La Dialogue, attended by senior civilian and military leaders from about 30 Asia-Pacific countries, Panetta said China also has a critical role to play in advancing security by “respecting the rules-based order that has served the region for six decades.” Liu Fu-kuo, a researcher at the Institute of International Relations of Taiwan-based National Chengchi University, who was also present at the forum, told CNA that Panetta's wording in the speech did not go beyond the U.S.'s basic tone. He was surprised a bit, however, by Panetta's move to bring up cross-strait relations in his speech, but believed the remarks were to demonstrate the U.S.' firm support for efforts to promote the peaceful development of cross-strait links. 1 Comment |
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If our buildup is not aimed at China, then just what is its purpose? The US no longer has a major strategic interest in the Far East. Taiwan is an acknowledged part of China and the Taiwanese are accommodating to this reality. Japan is big enough to get by on its own. The Korean War is long over and South Korea is no longer a US protectorate. Shipping through the straights of Malacca is almost entirely an Asian issue dominated by Asian commerce. There are no major natural resource issues (such as our reliance on mid-east oil) that require our intervention there. So what's up?
The US on the other hand is running annual trillion dollar deficits on top of its existing 17 trillion national debt. This is all being financed by government borrowing and related monetization by the Federal Reserve’s easy money policy (quantitative easing). This is not sustainable. Spending reductions will become inevitable and the enormous US defense budget will of necessity have to be drastically reduced. So why are we spending huge amounts of money expanding our naval prescience in the far east when it simply exacerbates relations with the areas dominant power, China?
Sooner or later, we will have to prioritize and rationalize out defense priorities. This current lack of clear direction must be addressed and US world interest reexamined and brought into consonance with our nation's limited economic capacity.