TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The U.S. House select committee on China is set to conduct a war game simulating a Chinese invasion of Taiwan later this week.
The war game will be hosted by the Washington, D.C.-based think tank Center for a New American Security. It will give observers a better picture of how a Taiwan Strait conflict would occur, certain U.S. military weaknesses, and global consequences, Axios reported.
Speaking to Fox News on Thursday (April 20), Representative Mike Gallagher, chair of the House select committee on China, said, “We are conducting this war game in order to prevent a war.” “We hope to learn what we can do in a bipartisan fashion to enhance deterrence so the Pentagon never has to face that choice,” he said.
“Republicans and Democrats are committed to peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. But peace can only be achieved through strength,” he added.
Gallagher also urged the U.S. to be more proactive in preparing for a Taiwan Strait conflict. “We need to be ready and we are not moving fast enough,” he said.
Gallagher, who recently visited Taiwan, has been extremely vocal about providing Taiwan with sufficient defense capabilities to deter a Chinese attack. “We need to be moving heaven and earth to enhance our deterrence and denial posture so that Xi Jinping concludes that he just can’t do it,” AP quoted Gallagher as saying.
The China select committee chair said he wants Congress to ramp up its military commitments to Taiwan. There is a US$19.5 billion backlog in weapons Taiwan has already paid for.