TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Commander of U.S. Pacific Air Forces (PACAF), General Kenneth Wilsbach, on Wednesday (March 8) said the U.S. must sink Chinese warships to break a blockade of Taiwan.

While speaking to reporters at the Air and Space Forces Association Warfare Symposium in Aurora, Colorado, Wilsbach recalled that in response to former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's trip to Taiwan, China deployed ships off the east coast of Taiwan to act "as a sort of blockade," reported Military.com. He said the surface-to-air missiles mounted on the ships created an "anti-access/area denial engagement zone" that discouraged warplanes from other countries from entering for fear of being shot down.

Although Washington's priority is to deter Beijing from invading, Wilsbach said the military needs to have contingencies in the event China does attack Taiwan. He argued that if hostilities do break out, the first order of business is that, "We've got to sink the ships."

The commander said that sinking Chinese warships should not only be the main objective of the PACAF "but really anyone that's going to be involved in a conflict like this." He stressed the need for the U.S. and the militaries of friendly nations to plan and train together a great deal more.

Wilsbach said that many wings under his command are rehearsing the U.S. Air Force's tactic of spreading crews and aircraft across "many, many islands." He also recommended the U.S. "amass firepower" in the region with the use of armed drones and added the Northrop Grumman B-21 Raider could be "helpful in our mission."