MAGA Leader Steve Bannon Says ‘1st Island Chain' Set by China Is Major Strategic Focus for U.S., in Interview
The first military strategic defense line stretches from the East China Sea south of Kyushu to the Philippines and the South China Sea. The Chinese military regards the area from the Ogasawara Islands to Saipan and Guam as the 'second island chain.'
China set the lines to prevent U.S. military intervention in the event of contingencies in the Taiwan Strait and other areas.
The MAGA movement is led by Trump's core supporters who are known for their restrictive stance on U.S. intervention in other countries.
'We're adamantly opposed to the Ukraine war because it's on the Eurasian landmass where we have no vital national security interest,' Bannon said during a phone interview. He added that Ukraine is 'trying to inexorably get us drawn into that war.'
Regarding the situation in the Middle East, he said: 'We're so opposed to a regime change war in the Middle East really conjured up by Israel…. The United States will be sucked in for 25 years.'
Drawing on the experiences of the United States' military interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan, which turned into quagmires, Bannon appeared to believe that Washington should avoid being forced to bear long-term burdens through the involvements.
In contrast, Bannon demonstrated strong hostility toward China.
Bannon served as an officer of the U.S. Navy 7th Fleet from 1977 to 1980 and engaged in the patrolling of the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait.
He said he thinks the possibility is high that China will invade Taiwan in 2027, when Beijing is said to be aiming to acquire the capability to invade Taiwan.
'I think 2027 is a very dangerous year unless Japan, the United States and [South] Korea start acting in unison as allies,' he said.
While stating that the United States should withdraw from large-scale military deployments in Eurasia, he emphasized the country should have expeditionary force capabilities. He said that the capability to end combat quickly 'is the type of thing that we want our money to go into.'
Regarding Trump's strategy toward Russia, Bannon said it was to do the reverse of what former U.S. President Richard Nixon did, when he normalized the United States' diplomatic relations with China to hold in check the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
Bannon believes that Trump is focused on getting a rapprochement with Russia despite his frustration with Moscow. He said it is important to pull Russia out of China's orbit. 'If the United States is not successful at that, we're going to have a century of conflict,' he said. Bannon said the United States will face even greater challenges if China and Russia become closer.
Bannon said that he shares these views with Trump.
Regarding policy toward China, Bannon said: 'I'm full on for decoupling immediately [from the Chinese economy]. And then, let the Chinese people do the work of overthrowing them.' However, he said that Trump does not support this policy.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Mainichi
an hour ago
- The Mainichi
It's Trump's economy now. The latest financial numbers offer some warning signs
WASHINGTON (AP) -- For all of President Donald Trump's promises of an economic "golden age," a spate of weak indicators this week told a potentially worrisome story as the impacts of his policies are coming into focus. Job gains are dwindling. Inflation is ticking upward. Growth has slowed compared with last year. More than six months into his term, Trump's blitz of tariff hikes and his new tax and spending bill have remodeled America's trading, manufacturing, energy and tax systems to his own liking. He's eager to take credit for any wins that might occur and is hunting for someone else to blame if the financial situation starts to totter. But as of now, this is not the boom the Republican president promised, and his ability to blame his Democratic predecessor, Joe Biden, for any economic challenges has faded as the world economy hangs on his every word and social media post. When Friday's jobs report turned out to be decidedly bleak, Trump ignored the warnings in the data and fired the head of the agency that produces the monthly jobs figures. "Important numbers like this must be fair and accurate, they can't be manipulated for political purposes," Trump said on Truth Social, without offering evidence for his claim. "The Economy is BOOMING." It's possible that the disappointing numbers are growing pains from the rapid transformation caused by Trump and that stronger growth will return -- or they may be a preview of even more disruption to come. Trump's economic plans are a political gamble Trump's aggressive use of tariffs, executive actions, spending cuts and tax code changes carries significant political risk if he is unable to deliver middle-class prosperity. The effects of his new tariffs are still several months away from rippling through the economy, right as many Trump allies in Congress will be campaigning in the midterm elections. "Considering how early we are in his term, Trump's had an unusually big impact on the economy already," said Alex Conant, a Republican strategist at Firehouse Strategies. "The full inflationary impact of the tariffs won't be felt until 2026. Unfortunately for Republicans, that's also an election year." The White House portrayed the blitz of trade frameworks leading up to Thursday's tariff announcement as proof of his negotiating prowess. The European Union, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia and other nations that the White House declined to name agreed that the U.S. could increase its tariffs on their goods without doing the same to American products. Trump simply set rates on other countries that lacked settlements. The costs of those tariffs -- taxes paid on imports to the U.S. -- will be most felt by many Americans in the form of higher prices, but to what extent remains uncertain. "For the White House and their allies, a key part of managing the expectations and politics of the Trump economy is maintaining vigilance when it comes to public perceptions," said Kevin Madden, a Republican strategist. Just 38% of adults approve of Trump's handling of the economy, according to a July poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs. That's down from the end of Trump's first term when half of adults approved of his economic leadership. The White House paints a rosier image, seeing the economy emerging from a period of uncertainty after Trump's restructuring and repeating the economic gains seen in his first term before the pandemic struck. "President Trump is implementing the very same policy mix of deregulation, fairer trade, and pro-growth tax cuts at an even bigger scale -- as these policies take effect, the best is yet to come," White House spokesman Kush Desai said. Recent economic reports suggest trouble ahead The economic numbers over the past week show the difficulties that Trump might face if the numbers continue on their current path: -- Friday's jobs report showed that U.S. employers have shed 37,000 manufacturing jobs since Trump's tariff launch in April, undermining prior White House claims of a factory revival. -- Net hiring has plummeted over the past three months with job gains of just 73,000 in July, 14,000 in June and 19,000 in May -- a combined 258,000 jobs lower than previously indicated. On average last year, the economy added 168,000 jobs a month. -- A Thursday inflation report showed that prices have risen 2.6% over the year that ended in June, an increase in the personal consumption expenditures price index from 2.2% in April. Prices of heavily imported items, such as appliances, furniture, and toys and games, jumped from May to June. -- On Wednesday, a report on gross domestic product -- the broadest measure of the U.S. economy -- showed that it grew at an annual rate of less than 1.3% during the first half of the year, down sharply from 2.8% growth last year. "The economy's just kind of slogging forward," said Guy Berger, senior fellow at the Burning Glass Institute, which studies employment trends. "Yes, the unemployment rate's not going up, but we're adding very few jobs. The economy's been growing very slowly. It just looks like a 'meh' economy is continuing." Trump's Fed attacks could unleash more inflation Trump has sought to pin the blame for any economic troubles on Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell, saying the Fed should cut its benchmark interest rates even though doing so could generate more inflation. Trump has publicly backed two Fed governors, Christoper Waller and Michelle Bowman, for voting for rate cuts at Wednesday's meeting. But their logic is not what the president wants to hear: They were worried, in part, about a slowing job market. But this is a major economic gamble being undertaken by Trump and those pushing for lower rates under the belief that mortgages will also become more affordable as a result and boost homebuying activity. His tariff policy has changed repeatedly over the last six months, with the latest import tax numbers serving as a substitute for what the president announced in April, which provoked a stock market sell-off. It might not be a simple one-time adjustment as some Fed board members and Trump administration officials argue. Trump didn't listen to the warnings on 'universal' tariffs Of course, Trump can't say no one warned him about the possible consequences of his economic policies. Biden, then the outgoing president, did just that in a speech last December at the Brookings Institution, saying the cost of the tariffs would eventually hit American workers and businesses. "He seems determined to impose steep, universal tariffs on all imported goods brought into this country on the mistaken belief that foreign countries will bear the cost of those tariffs rather than the American consumer," Biden said. "I believe this approach is a major mistake."
Yomiuri Shimbun
2 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
China and Russia Start Joint Drills in Sea of Japan
BEIJING (AFP-Jiji) — China and Russia began joint naval drills in the Sea of Japan on Sunday as they seek to reinforce their partnership and counterbalance what they see as a US-led global order. Alongside economic and political ties, Moscow and Beijing have strengthened their military cooperation in recent years, and their relations have deepened since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022. The 'Joint Sea-2025' exercises kicked off in waters near the Russian port of Vladivostok and would last for three days, China's defence ministry said in a statement on Sunday. The two sides will hold 'submarine rescue, joint anti-submarine, air defence and anti-missile operations, and maritime combat'. Four Chinese vessels, including guided-missile destroyers Shaoxing and Urumqi, are participating in the exercises alongside Russian ships, the ministry said. After the drills, the two countries will conduct naval patrols in 'relevant waters of the Pacific'. China and Russia have carried out annual drills for several years, with the 'Joint Sea' exercises beginning in 2012. Last year's drills were held along China's southern coast. The Chinese defence ministry said Friday that this year's exercises were aimed at 'further deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership' of the two countries. China has never denounced Russia's more than three-year war nor called for it to withdraw its troops, and many of Ukraine's allies, including the United States, believe that Beijing has provided support to Moscow. China insists it is a neutral party, regularly calling for an end to the fighting while also accusing Western countries of prolonging the conflict by arming Ukraine.
Yomiuri Shimbun
2 hours ago
- Yomiuri Shimbun
New Reciprocal Tariffs Set: United States' Inward-Looking Stance Causes Concern
The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has decided on new tariff rates for its 'reciprocal tariffs.' How should Tokyo deal with Washington's increasingly inward-looking stance? Japan must strengthen its cooperation with other countries and regions. Trump signed an executive order setting new reciprocal tariff rates last Thursday. The order imposes tariffs ranging from 10% to 41% on about 70 countries and regions with whom the United States has trade deficits, which it views as problematic. Japan and the European Union will be subject to a 15% tariff, while Syria will face the highest rate of 41%. Other countries not included in the executive order will be subject to a 10% tariff. The tariffs will take effect on Thursday. After World War II, the global economy developed with the United States playing a leading role to promote a free trade system. The United States had one of the most open markets in the world before the second Trump administration began, with an average tariff rate of just over 3%. The world's largest economy has now unilaterally built high tariff barriers. Although the tariff rates have been reduced from the levels initially announced in April, the measures are certain to have a negative impact on the global economy, and this is a cause for serious concern. In negotiations between the United States and other countries and regions aiming at reducing tariff rates, the United States has been conspicuously overbearing. While imposing high tariffs of 20% on Vietnam and 19% on Indonesia, despite their relatively small economic sizes, the United States has insisted on the principle of eliminating tariffs on its own exports. It must be said that trust in the United States, which openly embraces an 'America First' policy, has been severely damaged. The Trump administration's agenda has not progressed entirely as planned. Negotiations with China, the largest source of the U.S. trade deficit, have been rough going. This may indicate the limitations of the high tariff policy. If the costs of high tariffs are passed on to consumers and prices rise again in the United States, public dissatisfaction in the country will inevitably grow. With China in mind, Japan plans to establish manufacturing bases of important products for its economic security in the Unites States in order to build a mutually beneficial relationship. It is necessary to repeatedly explain to the United States that promoting such cooperation between Japan and the United States is the path the two countries should pursue. The new tariff measures will take effect on Thursday, but concern remains that Trump will continue to brandish high tariffs in the future. It is important for Japan and other countries to work together to prevent the collapse of the free trade system. Reducing dependence on the United States while mutually expanding markets could be an effective countermeasure. Automobile tariffs, which are Japan's top matter of interest, are not included in the executive order. The lack of a timeline for reducing them to 15% is a cause for concern. The Japanese government should repeatedly urge the early implementation of the reduction. (From The Yomiuri Shimbun, Aug. 3, 2025)
