June 10,:
Elbridge Colby, a former US defence official, warned that China has abandoned "peaceful unification" and that an attack on Taiwan might occur with little to no warning. In 2017 and 2018, Elbridge Colby was the deputy assistant secretary of defence for strategy and force development, a position he held during his time in the Trump administration.
Additionally, he is being considered for a position in the national security cabinet in the event that Donald Trump wins the presidency in November. While speaking with Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun in Washington DC, Colby emphasised the necessity to fortify the military in order to respond swiftly to Chinese aggression. And there may be no advance notice of an attack, he said.
The ex-Pentagon official speculated that Xi Jinping, China's leader, had likely decided that peacefully uniting Taiwan and China was impossible. The United States, according to Colby, might be involved in a cross-strait battle, with American forces stationed in the Asia Pacific region, including the Philippines, Japan, and Australia (as reported by Taiwan News). Previous analysts, however, have pointed out the many preparations that would be required for such an operation, suggesting that China may have trouble launching a surprise attack on Taiwan.
According to Colby, the United States should redirect its support from Ukraine to Taiwan due to the fact that Asia has become the "primary theatre." Also, he argued that the US shouldn't leave Europe alone to deal with Russia, but that Europe can manage China far better than Asia can. Earlier this month, Admiral Dong Jun, China's Minister of National Defence, issued a warning about "external forces" that are trying to restrict China with Taiwan by supporting Taiwan Independence separatists. He claimed that these forces are putting Taiwan in a perilous situation.
The man warned that anybody who dared to break Taiwan's bond with China would "end up in self-destruction." According to China's defence minister, certain foreign powers persist in selling weapons to Taiwan, thus "hollowing out" the one-China principle. The speaker emphasised that Taiwan is being drawn into a precarious situation by the efforts of "Taiwan Independence separatists in an attempt to contain China with Taiwan" and that these actions were being carried out by outside powers.
China encircled Taiwan in two days of military drills, which it characterised as "punishment" for so-called "separatist acts," CNN said, just days after Lai Ching-te took the oath of office. In his inaugural address, Lai urged Beijing to cease threatening the island nation, which China has a claim to. This appeal for calm prompted China to conduct the drill.
