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Bloomberg
9 hours ago
- General
- Bloomberg
China Blasts Hegseth as Defense Minister Avoids Singapore Forum
China expressed 'strong dissatisfaction' with US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth for his speech at a Singapore defense forum on Saturday, even as Beijing declined to send its top military diplomat to the annual event. Hegseth chided China during the Shangri-La Dialogue, noting how the nation didn't send a high-profile representative to the gathering. It was the first time Beijing hasn't sent a defense minister to the forum since 2019, depriving China from conducting diplomacy with top military officials from around the globe and pushing its vision for regional security.
Telegraph
a day ago
- General
- Telegraph
How the US plans to fight off a Chinese invasion of Taiwan
A soldier careens into the briefing tent of Cross Functional Team (CFT) Taiwan, barely able to catch his breath. 'Attention on the floor!' he shouts. 'Sorry to barge in, sir, but you'll want to hear this.' Chinese ships have begun to cross the Taiwan Strait 'with full intention to invade '. Chaos breaks out in the command centre, where specialists had been outlining recent operations. Sirens blare, soldiers pick up rucksacks, plastic chairs are pushed aside. Over the tree-line, hostile drones whirr into view. As troops hustle a visiting congressional delegation to an evacuation point, they swoop overhead and drop munitions. Ear-splitting explosions send plumes of smoke into the air. People fall by the side of the road, screaming. So begins the long-feared war between the world's two largest militaries – or at least, a drill simulating the event at the 25th capability exercise of the US Special Forces at Fort Bragg army base. A hint of slapstick lingers in the air. Called upon to help the wounded, visitors fiddle with their lanyards, while fake blood soaks the clothes of gurgling actors. The scenario, however, is head-poundingly serious. Xi Jinping, the Chinese president, has ordered his military to be ready to 'reunify' the self-governing island of Taiwan with the mainland by 2027. An extraordinary build-up is under way. The People's Liberation Army (PLA) now boasts one million troops more than the US, as well as the world's largest navy, vast supplies of ground-based long-range missiles and a galloping nuclear arsenal set to hit 1,000 warheads by 2030. In satellite imagery, a mock-up of central Taipei including the president's office can be seen near a desert PLA base. Beijing also has home advantage: its resources are all closer to Taiwan than the US bases in the Philippines, Japan and Guam. Any movement of US forces will be immediately spotted by China's extensive sensor network. Pete Hegseth, the US defence secretary, warned on Saturday that the threat from China was real and a Chinese invasion of Taiwan could be imminent. He added that any attempt by China to conquer Taiwan 'would result in devastating consequences for the Indo-Pacific and the world'. 'Beijing is credibly preparing potentially to use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific,' Mr Hegseth said in a speech to the Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier defence forum, in Singapore. In March, Mr Hegseth issued a classified memo that prioritised efforts to deter a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, leaving Europe to 'assume risk' in facing down Russia. 'China is the Department's sole pacing threat, and denial of a Chinese fait accompli seizure of Taiwan – while simultaneously defending the US homeland is the Department's sole pacing scenario,' he wrote. The memo lifted sections almost word-for-word from a report by the Heritage Foundation, a conservative Washington-based think tank. 'If I had to bet they are laying the groundwork now to begin large swings of forces out of lesser-priority theatres to the Indo-Pacific in around six months,' says Rob Peters, a senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, who co-authored the report. In Fort Bragg headquarters, a briefing video opens with the sound of a clock ticking ominously. Chinese lettering fills the screen. Three red stars mark the years 2014 (Russia's seizure of Ukraine), 2022 (the invasion of Ukraine) and 2027 – the year China could strike Taiwan. The impact of a Chinese invasion on the lives of ordinary people would make that of the Covid pandemic 'pale in comparison', says Lt Gen Jonathan P Braga, the commander of the US Army Special Operations Command. It would disrupt the supply of the microchips that power crucial technologies, 'from I can't buy a car, a refrigerator, a cell-phone… all that stuff'. 'We need people… to think about this, because it is by exponential means the greatest threat we have,' Lt Gen Braga says. What role ground troops would play is open to question. Around 500 US military trainers are currently based on Taiwan, teaching the local forces how to operate advanced weaponry. The first test with the long-range Himars was carried out this month. Special forces would likely enter Taiwan surreptitiously in the weeks before an invasion; army units might join, but public deployments could inflame the situation. The defenders' goal would be to 'turn the Taiwan beaches into the beaches of Normandy,' says Mr Peters. Failing that: 'box them in like Anzio.' But the fiercest battles will be fought in the skies and at sea. The US is preparing a 'hellscape' of drones, mines and unmanned ships to slow down China's crossing of the 100-mile Taiwan Strait. The PLA navy will form a blockade around the eastern flank of the island, preventing the US from reaching or resupplying the Taiwanese. Spectacular dogfights would erupt: US F-35s, bombers and stealth B-21 raiders attempting to sink the warships, as China's 3,000 aircraft fight back. To stand a chance, the US will need 'a metric s--- ton' of long-range anti-ship missiles, in particular the new Tomahawk, which has a range of 1,500 miles, says Mr Peters. 'I cannot stress this enough,' he adds, the arsenal is currently 'way, way [too] low.' One goal of the special forces – however many they number – would be to try and open up air corridors onto the island. Out on a Fort Bragg training range, a dozen camouflaged soldiers creep through the trees towards a Russian-made Scud missile and nearby command-and-control centre, which form part of China's Integrated Air Defence System (IADS). To the south of their position, a drone-operator, robot dog and two armoured vehicles mounted with M240b machine guns wait for the signal. Snipers watch behind camouflage. 'Open fire,' the commander orders over the radio. A drone whizzes overhead, dropping a bomb near the Scud. The M240b gunners spray the guards, providing cover for the soldiers to race out of the trees and eliminate those left alive. The Scud is disabled with a flamethrower (its unique fuel makes explosive detonation tricky). Then comes the most novel element of the exercise: as Chinese drones launch a counter-attack, an Anduril electronic warfare system breaks the link between the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and their pilots. The special forces team survives and a 'temporary air corridor' is opened. Whether Beijing's real drones would be so simply overcome is another question. 'There is an assumption that China has been observing [the war in Ukraine, where Chinese drones have been used en masse] and that their ability to ramp up capacity now appears to be better than the US and Nato's ability to produce these systems,' says Colin Smith, a Rand Corp. researcher and Marine veteran. It can be difficult even to train with the systems on US soil. Electronic warfare systems interfere with nearby residents' garages. On Camp Pendleton, in California, Mr Smith's team was unable to practise with the jammers they used in Afghanistan 'because of the electromagnetic spectrum limitations'. 'Those are things that the Department of Defense is trying to work through on certain bases,' he says. Homeland defence is the most pressing problem. China's intercontinental ballistic missiles can now strike the US mainland. In May, US Air Force Brig Gen Dough Wickert warned locals around Edwards Air Force Base that a Pearl Harbour-like scenario could hit their Californian homes. Donald Trump's solution is the Golden Dome, a network of space-based interceptors he claims – unfeasibly – could be finished within three years for a cost of 'just' $175 billion. In war games on Taiwan, China does often hit the US mainland, says Mr Smith. 'What if they want to hit the west coast and get the American population thinking, 'why are we doing this again'?' Mark Cancian, a retired Marine colonel and senior advisor at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), ran a 2023 war game on an amphibious invasion. Over 24 run-throughs, the US managed to prevent China capturing the island most times, but at the cost of dozens of ships, hundreds of aircraft and tens of thousands of service-members. The US still needs to decide its position on how and when ground troops will enter the fray, Mr Cancian says. 'When you talk to the services, to the Marine corps, they say 'well of course we're going to be on Taiwan when the war begins'. But the state department says 'there's no f---ing way', as that will precipitate the conflict we're trying to avoid.' In one round of the war game, a player tried to fly a US brigade into Taiwan. But they turned back after they lost a battalion to air defences. 'After four, five weeks of combat, when the Chinese fleet has been chewed up, [perhaps] then you can start doing things,' he says. Sometimes, nuclear war erupts. Such hypotheticals are above the pay grade of the soldiers who will be called upon to fight in Taiwan's jungles, cities and beaches should war break out. On an urban training village in Fort Bragg, two Chinook MH47 helicopters fly a platoon of elite Rangers into battle. The soldiers rappel down ropes onto the roofs, while the helicopters rattle out machine gun rounds. Doors are stormed through, flash-bang grenades thrown as the unit rapidly clears the buildings. High above their heads, a single Himars missile streaks through the sky. Here, it will land safely on a patch of Fort Bragg, guided to within 1m of the intended target. The US hopes it will never come to war with China. Mr Xi may well think twice, wary of a long and costly conflict. If he does gamble, however, the Green Berets will no longer be practising on the fields of North Carolina – and those Himars missiles will be raining down on an army tasting its first real combat.
Al Jazeera
a day ago
- Business
- Al Jazeera
US defence chief warns of China threat as Beijing's top brass skip summit
Singapore – Of the many military officials darting across the lobby of Singapore's Shangri-La Hotel this weekend, there has been one significant absence. China's Defence Minister Dong Jun skipped the annual Shangri-La Dialogue, Asia's premier security forum, with Beijing sending a delegation of lower-ranking representatives instead. It was the first time since 2019 that China has not dispatched its defence minister to the high-level dialogue on regional defence, except when the event was cancelled in 2020 and 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Beijing's decision raised eyebrows in Singapore, coming at a time of heightened tensions between China and the United States – the world's two biggest superpowers. Dong's absence meant there was no face-to-face meeting with his US counterpart, Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth, who had the floor to himself on Saturday when he told the defence forum that the military threat posed by China was potentially imminent. 'It has to be clear to all that Beijing is credibly preparing to potentially use military force to alter the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific,' Hegseth told delegates in Singapore. Pointing to China's regular military drills around Taiwan as well as increasingly frequent skirmishes in the South China Sea, Hegseth said Beijing was proactively harassing its neighbours. 'There's no reason to sugar-coat it. The threat China poses is real, and it could be imminent,' Hegseth said. He also pointed to China's growing military assertiveness as a reason for Asian nations to boost their defence spending, pointing to Germany, which has pledged to move towards spending 5 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on defence. 'It doesn't make sense for countries in Europe to do that while key allies in Asia spend less on defence in the face of an even more formidable threat,' Hegseth said. The defence chief also looked to reassure Asian allies that Washington was committed to Asia Pacific security despite strained ties in recent months as US President Donald Trump targeted some close allies with hefty trade tariffs. 'America is proud to be back in the Indo-Pacific, and we're here to stay,' he said, opening his speech. Some analysts were quick to play down the severity of Hegseth's warnings about China. 'Short of a very few countries, not many in this part of the world see China as an imminent threat and would up their [defence] spending,' said Dylan Loh, assistant professor in the public policy and global affairs programme at Singapore's Nanyang Technological University. In previous years, the Shangri-La Dialogue had provided a rare platform for meetings between Chinese and US officials in the more informal surroundings that the summit could offer. The structure of the schedule also allowed Beijing's military chiefs to directly respond to the keynote speech from the US defence secretary and to present their narrative to other members of the Asia Pacific. Beijing has remained tight-lipped on the reason for Defence Minister Dong's absence from the forum, fuelling an information void that has been filled by speculation. One theory is that China did not want to send a high-profile delegate to the event at such a sensitive time as Beijing navigates the tariff war with the Trump administration. 'Any sort of faux pas or comments that may go off script can be picked up and picked apart or misconstrued,' said Loh, of Singapore's Nanyang Technological University. 'So the question is why take the risk when US-China relations are at a very delicate point at this moment,' Loh told Al Jazeera. The Shangri-La Dialogue weekend has not always been the easiest occasion for Chinese defence ministers. In recent years, they have faced difficult questions from their counterparts in other countries, who are unhappy with Beijing's increasing assertiveness in the Asia Pacific region. Loh said this could be another factor in Dong's absence from the high-profile event. 'Any Chinese defence minister coming to Singapore now will be exposing himself and the country to political risk,' he said. 'Themes like the South China Sea and possibly Taiwan will emerge, which makes China a convenient target,' Loh added. Dong was appointed as China's defence minister in late 2023, after his predecessor, Li Shangfu, was removed from office. Less than a year into the job, there was speculation surrounding Dong's new position following media reports that he was under investigation as part of a wider investigation into corruption in the Chinese military. Beijing denied the reports, with the minister continuing to maintain a public profile despite the allegations. There has also been intense scrutiny of China's military, following reports of an apparent purge of top-level officials by President Xi Jinping. One of Beijing's most senior generals, He Weidong, was missing from a high-profile political meeting in April, adding to rumours surrounding a possible restructuring in the People's Liberation Army (PLA). Ian Chong, a nonresident scholar at the Carnegie China research centre, said such speculation could be a factor in Dong's no-show in Singapore. 'Because of the domestic turmoil with China's senior military, they perhaps don't want to, or the PLA itself feels that it's not in a position to send somebody senior,' Chong told Al Jazeera. Announcing Dong's absence at a news conference before the summit, Chinese military spokesperson Senior Colonel Zhang Xiaogang maintained that communication channels were still open between defence officials in Washington and Beijing. 'China places great importance on US-China military ties, and is open to communication at different levels,' Zhang said.
Free Malaysia Today
2 days ago
- Business
- Free Malaysia Today
Trump accuses China of violating tariff de-escalation deal
US President Donald Trump said he expects to eventually speak with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. (AFP pic) WASHINGTON : US President Donald Trump signalled renewed trade tensions with China today, arguing that Beijing had 'totally violated' a tariff de-escalation deal, while saying he expects to eventually speak with Chinese leader Xi Jinping. Trump's comments came after US treasury secretary Scott Bessent said that trade talks with China were 'a bit stalled', in an interview with broadcaster Fox News. Top officials from the world's two biggest economies agreed during talks in Geneva this month to temporarily lower staggeringly high tariffs they had imposed on each other, in a pause to last 90 days. But today, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: 'China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US,' without providing further details. The impasse came as China's slow-walking on export licence approvals for rare earths and other elements needed to make cars and chips fuelled US frustration, the Wall Street Journal reported today. Key to the tariff de-escalation pact was a demand that China resume rare earth exports, the report added, citing sources familiar with the matter. Earlier today, US trade representative Jamieson Greer told CNBC: 'The Chinese are slow-rolling their compliance, which is completely unacceptable.' While Greer did not go into specifics, he noted reports that Beijing continues to 'slow down and choke off things like critical minerals and rare earth magnets,' adding that the US trade deficit with China is still 'enormous'. Greer said that Washington was not seeing major shifts in Beijing's behaviour. Trump's deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller told reporters that with China failing to fulfil its obligations, 'that opens up all manner of action for the US to ensure future compliance'. Yesterday, Bessent suggested that there could be a call between Trump and Xi eventually. Trump told reporters this afternoon: 'I'm sure that I'll speak to President Xi, and hopefully we'll work that out.' US stock markets closed mixed, after fluctuating in the day on jitters that Trump could return to a more confrontational stance on China. Forthcoming deals? Washington is also in 'intensive talks' with other trading partners, Greer told CNBC, saying he has meetings next week with counterparts from Malaysia, Vietnam and the European Union. The meetings come as he heads to Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) talks in Europe. 'The negotiations are on track, and we do hope to have some deals in the next couple of weeks,' Greer said. Washington and Tokyo are making progress towards a deal, Kyodo News reported, citing Japan's tariffs envoy Ryosei Akazawa. Akazawa, who met with Bessent and commerce secretary Howard Lutnick in Washington, expects another round of talks before mid-June. But Trump's tariff plans are facing legal challenges. A US federal trade court ruled this week that the president overstepped his authority in tapping emergency economic powers to justify sweeping tariffs. It blocked the most wide-ranging levies imposed since Trump returned to office, although this ruling has been stayed for now as an appeals process is ongoing. The decision left intact, however, tariffs that Trump imposed on sector-specific imports such as steel and autos. Greer said it was important to get through the legal process so partners have a 'better understanding of the landing zone'. Since Trump returned to the presidency, he has slapped sweeping tariffs on most US trading partners, with especially high rates on Chinese imports. New tit-for-tat levies on both sides reached three digits before the de-escalation this month, where Washington agreed to temporarily reduce additional tariffs on Chinese imports from 145% to 30%. China, meanwhile, lowered its added duties from 125% to 10%. The US level is higher as it includes a 20% levy that Trump imposed on Chinese goods over the country's alleged role in the illicit drug trade – an accusation that Beijing has pushed back against. The high US-China tariffs, while still in place, forced many businesses to pause shipments as they waited for both governments to strike a deal.
ABC News
2 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Trump signals fresh trade tensions with China, accusing Beijing of violating a deal
US President Donald Trump has signalled renewed trade tensions with China, arguing that Beijing had "violated" a deal to de-escalate tariffs, at a time when both sides appeared deadlocked in negotiations. "China, perhaps not surprisingly to some, HAS TOTALLY VIOLATED ITS AGREEMENT WITH US," Mr Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform. "So much for being Mr NICE GUY!" he wrote. The president's post on Friday came hours after US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said that trade talks with China were "a bit stalled" in an interview with broadcaster Fox News. Two weeks after breakthrough negotiations that resulted in a temporary truce in the trade war between the US and China, Mr Bessent said progress since then has been slow, but said he expects more talks in the next few weeks. The world's two biggest economies had agreed to temporarily lower staggeringly high tariffs they had imposed on each other, in a pause to last 90 days, after talks between top officials in Geneva. Asked about the post on CNBC, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer took aim at Beijing for continuing to "slow down and choke off things like critical minerals". He added that the US' trade deficit with China "continues to be enormous", and that Washington was not seeing major shifts in Beijing's behaviour. On Thursday, Mr Bessent had suggested that Mr Trump and his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, could get involved in the situation. He said there could be a call between the two leaders eventually. The US and China had agreed to a 90-day pause on measures and that tariffs would be slashed by 115 per cent, after talks in Switzerland this month. Washington agreed to temporarily reduce its additional tariffs on Chinese imports from 145 per cent to 30 per cent, while China lowered its added duties from 125 per cent to 10 per cent. However, the deal did not include tariffs on cars, steel and aluminium. The US tariff level remains higher as it also includes a 20 per cent levy that the Trump administration recently imposed on Chinese goods over the country's alleged role in the illicit drug trade -- an issue that Beijing has pushed back against. The high tariff levels, while still in place, forced much trade between the two countries to grind to a halt, as businesses paused shipments to wait for both governments to reach an agreement to lower the levies. Meanwhile, on Friday, French President Emmanuel Macron said that division between the US and China was the main risk currently confronting the world. Speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore, Asia's major annual defence and security conference, he emphasised the need for building new coalitions between Europe and partners in the Indo-Pacific. The French president followed the leaders of China, Japan and other European countries in visiting the region in recent weeks, in a sign of Southeast Asia's strategic importance amid uncertainties on global supply chains and trade. "I will be clear, France is a friend and an ally of the United States, and is a friend, and we do cooperate - even if sometimes we disagree and compete - with China," said Mr Macron. He added: "You have to choose a side. If we do so, we will kill the global order, and we will destroy methodically, all the institutions we created after the Second World War in order to preserve peace and to have cooperation on health, on climate, on human rights and so on." The French president said Asia and Europe have a common interest in preventing the disintegration of the global order. "The time for non-alignment has undoubtedly passed, but the time for coalitions of action has come, and requires that countries capable of acting together give themselves every means to do so," he said. ABC/wires
