TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — The new Commanding General of US Army Pacific, General Ronald P. Clark, said China’s military drills simulating a blockade of Taiwan have become routine, and the US must ensure that Beijing understands America’s commitment to deterring an amphibious assault on Taiwan.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Clark said China’s “aggressive behavior” has made the regional situation more dangerous. “These are extraordinary times,” he said, stressing that some of the actions taken by adversaries “really leave you speechless at times.”
Clark cited China’s increasingly frequent exercises simulating a blockade of Taiwan as a key example. He said that five years ago, he would not have believed Beijing would consider such operations, “Now it’s commonplace that the PLA would make a move like that."
Since 2022, Beijing has conducted a series of military exercises simulating a blockade of Taiwan. The WSJ said it also uses fighter jets, naval ships, coast guard vessels, and drones, applying near-daily "gray zone" pressure around Taiwan.
Referring to the intensified Chinese exercises around Taiwan, Clark said, “It gives us an opportunity to really understand how they would go about something like a blockade or potentially a cross-strait invasion, which as we all know is exceptionally difficult.” An amphibious assault would require Chinese forces to cross the Taiwan Strait, which spans about 130 km at its narrowest, to land troops and equipment on Taiwan’s shores.
“To think that you could execute a mission like that over a contested space that’s roughly 80 nautical miles—it would be a challenge,” Clark said. “We just have to make sure that they understand that our efforts to deter that type of activity is exactly what we’re willing to do," he said.
The authors pointed out that if conflict were to break out, Beijing would likely attempt to keep US warships and aircraft out of the fight by turning these areas into high-risk zones. Clark said US ground forces on the first island chain would disperse, strike Chinese targets from land, gather critical battlefield intelligence, and create openings for US air and naval units.
To support their mission, the US Army is deploying new missile systems, including the Typhon, capable of targeting enemy ships, aircraft, and land assets as far as China, which was sent to the Philippines last year. “If it gives them pause, if it causes them to think twice, if it causes them to delay any thoughts they would have about some sort of aggressive action towards Taiwan that would result somehow in reunification, let them have it,” said Clark.
