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Gen. Keane: China 'clearly our No. 1 threat out there'

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Gen. Keane: China 'clearly our No. 1 threat out there'
Published 3 hours ago
By Charles Creitz | Fox News

Gen. Jack Keane claimed China is the U.S.'s top geopolitical threat, and he praised new Defense Secretary Mark Esper for echoing that sentiment.

Esper was correct Wednesday when he expressed concern over both the Chinese government and the regime of Kim Jong Un in North Korea, Keane said on "The Daily Briefing."

"I'm delighted that we're having press conferences again," he said.

"The Pentagon, just like the Department of State, has to answer to the American people. China is clearly our No. 1 threat out there. It's growing every single day."

In his remarks, Esper said that China is "engaging in a deliberate strategy to undermine the stability of the region," and that Beijing's values and actions are at odds with those of most other nations.

The Pentagon chief, who took office in late July, was formerly the secretary of the Army and also served during the Gulf War.

Echoing the secretary's comments, Keane said Beijing has an increased military presence in the Indo-Pacific region and has appeared to overtake the United States militarily in the key maritime theater.

"Strategically they want to dominate the western Pacific and Asia," he said, calling China an "economic predator" that wants to replace the U.S. as the chief world power.

In an interview with Fox News earlier this month, Esper elaborated on the Pentagon's China focus.

"China is the No. 1 priority for this department. It’s outlined in the National Defense Strategy, why we think it’s a long-term strategic competitor and one that is pursuing a maximization campaign, if you will, throughout the Indo-Pacific Theater, whether it’s politically, economically, or militarily," he told correspondent Jennifer Griffin.

"They are clearly professionalizing and expanding the capacity and capabilities of the military in order to push the United States out of that theater."

https://www.foxnews.com/media/jack-keane-china-threat-military
 
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Defense Secretary Mark Esper: It's China, China, China
by Tom Rogan
| August 28, 2019 03:05 PM

Speaking to the press on Wednesday, new Defense Secretary Mark Esper outlined his vision for the Pentagon.

Summed up, it's basically: China, China, China.

Esper was clear that the Indo-Pacific is now America's "priority theater" for operations. He was equally clear that China is deliberately undercutting international rules and that the "Chinese Communist Party" has divergent interests from the vast majority of regional nations. In contrast, Esper said, the United States is "upholding core principles" related to "international rules and norms."

While these comments might not be surprising to some observers, their unambiguous quality is a clear message to Beijing and nations nearby. Esper is saying that we're here to stay — here to stay both in terms of regional presence in the Pacific and in preserving the U.S.-led international order that has done so much for so many (including China) since the end of World War II. That order, after all, has enabled free trade and democratic rights to prosper to the benefit of humanity.

But Esper's message isn't one that he alone subscribes to. The outgoing head of the U.S. Navy is equally clear that his force's increased activity in the Indo-Pacific reflects a new norm. Standing alongside Esper, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Gen. Joe Dunford noted that the Pentagon has adopted a new global orientation in its contingency planning for threats from China and Russia. This reflects those nations' ability to turn a regional fight into cyber, space, and ranged warfare.

Still, the key takeaway is that China is top of Esper's to-focus-on list. Considering that nation's effort to trample American interests, Esper is right on the mark.

https://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/defense-secretary-mark-esper-its-china-china-china
 
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You have an exquisite talent for bumping up your own threads
 
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