TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — A US researcher on Wednesday warned that Taiwan must prepare for a potential decapitation strike by China, urging stronger continuity-of-government planning.
The US House Select Committee on China held a hearing in the morning on the CCP's tactics to marginalize Taiwan, per CNA. Shirley Kan, a former Congressional Research Service specialist, and Mira Rapp-Hooper, a former White House official, were among those who testified.
Addressing Beijing’s hybrid warfare tactics, Kan said Taiwan and the US must deepen cooperation on deterrence and resilience. Citing Ukraine, she said effective defense requires a whole-of-society approach, not just military strength, and that Taipei and Washington can draw lessons from Kyiv’s experience.
Kan pointed out that Ukraine is transforming its defense industry and said that if Ukraine can do it, so can Taiwan. She said there are many ways in which the US innovation and industry can bolster Taiwan's defense sector.
The US and Taiwan should further cooperate on leadership, continuity of government, continuity of operations, and command and control during war and crises, she said. Citing the US State of the Union address as an example, she said leaders of the three branches of government and senior officials gather in the Capitol, but one Cabinet member is always designated to stay away as a safeguard.
Kan urged attention be paid in Taiwan to the threat of a decapitation strike. She stressed that the president and vice president should never appear at the same location.
Rapp-Hooper, who served as National Security Council director of Indo-Pacific Affairs under former President Joe Biden, said that in recent months, China has increasingly sought to shape US policy toward Taiwan through trade negotiations. She said Beijing’s approach appears to have two components.
First, it seeks to weaken or delay US security assistance to Taiwan by opposing arms sales and defense dialogues. Second, it is pushing for changes to the US declaratory policy on Taiwan, such as adding language that the US "opposes Taiwan independence” or “supports peaceful reunification.”
Rapp-Hooper said China may be seeking concrete policy adjustments that avoid triggering strong reactions from Congress or the American public. However, she warned that changes in US policy wording at a time when Taiwan is demonstrating resolve to strengthen its own defense and resilience could undermine public morale.
She recommended that in the coming weeks, Congress should pass a resolution reaffirming support for the Taiwan Relations Act and move to codify the Six Assurances into law. She added that Congress should reject Beijing’s effort to tie Taiwan issues to trade negotiations.
In September last year, the House Foreign Affairs Committee approved an amendment requiring the Six Assurances to be written into law and prohibiting changes without congressional approval. Rapp-Hooper added that Congress should also codify other key elements of US policy toward Taiwan to limit Beijing’s room to reinterpret or relitigate Washington’s position.
She said Congress must strengthen Taiwan’s capacity to resist gray zone coercion. The House Select Committee on China could work with the executive branch to prioritize areas supporting gray zone defense and include a provision in the next National Defense Authorization Act that mandates a strategy for immediate action.
