America's top General orders the review of US/Chinese military interactions
July 19, 2022Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, instructed his staff to compile data on every interaction between the Chinese and US military over the past half decade. According to three defense officials, the intention is to review and analyze the rising count of engagements between the two forces in the South China Sea and surrounding area.
Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said last month at an Asian security conference both US and allied militaries have “seen an alarming increase in the number of unsafe aerial intercepts and confrontations at sea by PLA aircraft and vessels.”
The nation's top general has ordered staff to gather info about every interaction between the U.S. military and the Chinese military over the past 5 years, 3 defense officials say. https://t.co/nZtKnqNFpR
— NBC News (@NBCNews) July 18, 2022
On July 7th, Milley met on a video teleconference with the chief of the Joint Staff Department for the People’s Liberation Army of China, Gen. Li Zuocheng, on which the Chinese official argued against the claim that Chinese forces have been behaving aggressively towards US ships and other allied military forces operating in the area.
The transcript of the call was made public the same day. Col. Dave Butler, Milley’s spokesperson said that Milley “underscored the importance of the People’s Liberation Army engaging in substantive dialogue on improving crisis communications and reducing strategic risk.”
Milley spoke on his order to staff saying that, “China has been on the rise, economically and militarily, for more than a decade. They’ve become more bold in the Pacific. Maintaining open lines of communication and managing competition will reduce strategic risk.”
He continued, “The U.S. military’s focus is on modernization and readiness. Our network of partners and allies is a source of strength. Through integrated deterrence, the rules-based order will continue to allow every nation to prosper.”
Milley is currently reviewing the hundreds of encounters between Chinese and Allied forces in an effort to ascertain when the uptick in aggression began and how frequently they occur.
According to Harrison Pretat, an associate fellow with the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, the number of reported unsafe or unprofessional incidents by the Chinese military has increased. He also points out that we do not yet know if this increase reflects a higher number of incidents or if it means that more incidents have been made public.
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