March 09, 2017
Reassuring Asia of America’s Commitment to the Region
The Trump administration’s defense-budget increase should come as welcome news to Asian countries worried about mounting threats to regional order. A $54 billion boost this year would improve U.S. military readiness and pay for investments in new platforms and innovative technologies.
The Pentagon is now at work on the details, and the precise contours of its submission to Congress remain a work in progress. As the process unfolds, the administration should use the opportunity to reassure key Asian nations.
Security challenges in the Asia-Pacific are rising. North Korea continues to make advances in ballistic missiles and nuclear warheads, and the day is nearing when Pyongyang can deliver a nuclear payload to the continental U.S. China’s two-decade program of military modernization continues, and Beijing has made major investments in anti-access and area-denial capabilities aimed at backing U.S. forces away from the western Pacific. Russia has become more regionally active, conducting joint exercises with China’s navy in the South China Sea and reportedly establishing a strategic bomber division for Pacific patrols.
Read the full article at The Wall Street Journal.
More from CNAS
-
Sharper: India and the Quad
Despite recent bilateral challenges, India’s relationship with the United States and its leadership within the Quad remains indispensable for an Indo-Pacific that is cooperati...
By Keerthi Martyn & Charles Horn
-
America’s Self-Loathing Is a Losing Hand
This article was originally published in The Washington Post.Around 10 years ago, the United States began a historic shift in its grand strategy toward China, abandoning the b...
By David Feith
-
How China Could Use U.S. Farmland to Attack America
Chinese entities have been acquiring land in key locations near U.S. military bases, sparking national security concerns about possible spying — or even a potential attack. Fo...
By David Feith
-
Japan’s Iron Lady: A Prime Minister for the Trump Era?
This article was originally published in The Diplomat. A protégé of Abe Shinzo, newly elected Liberal Democratic Party President Takaichi Sanae inherits her mentor’s approach...
By Ryan Claffey