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I hope you saw my latest weekly column.
ROGER WICKER: Shrinking U.S. fleet risks giving advantage to China
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The United States and China are fast approaching a pivotal moment that will
determine who controls the Pacific. For 75 years, the U.S. Navy has been the
dominant force in that region, providing support to our allies and protecting
trade lanes that are vital to our economy. China is now challenging our
presence in the region. Over the past decade, China has dramatically grown its
military and built the world’s largest navy. In the last year alone, China has
produced a record 27 navy warships compared to just three new warships for the
U.S. Navy. China is bent on replacing America as the world’s leading superpower
and is making the necessary investments to do so.
Whether America meets this challenge will depend on the actions of Congress
and President Biden. Although our national policy has been to achieve a
355-ship Navy, years of production delays and scarce funding have left us with
an undersized fleet of 297 ships. Our readiness has declined, and we are
scrapping old vessels faster than we are building new ones.
Unfortunately, this trend does not seem to bother President Biden. His budget
proposal this year would have cut real funding for the Navy, even though
military leaders have said they need a three to five percent increase.
President Biden’s lack of urgency in reviving our Navy has sent a clear message
of weakness to China. That message was amplified by his rushed and chaotic
withdrawal from Afghanistan, which allowed China to portray us as an unreliable
partner to countries like Taiwan. This pattern of weakness from the President
has encouraged China to act more boldly against our allies and interests.
China Moves Closer Toward Invading Taiwan
This month, China flexed its muscles by sending 149 military jets into
Taiwan’s air defense zone. In addition, China has been staging beach landing
drills across the strait from Taiwan and has threatened to “crush” the island
nation if it officially declares independence from Beijing. Taiwan’s President,
Tsai Ing-wen, has courageously vowed not to surrender her country’s democracy
to the communist regime. America now needs to send an unambiguous message to
communist China that we will not tolerate an invasion.
America has been aiding Taiwan through the sale of military arms since 1979.
The U.S. military has also been training Taiwanese troops over the past year to
bolster their defenses. Taiwan will need more and more support from
freedom-loving allies in order to maintain their independence. The best way to
avoid a military conflict in the Pacific is to make it clear we will defend our
Taiwanese friends.
U.S. Needs More Ships Now
President Teddy Roosevelt once observed, “A good Navy is not a provocation to
war. It is the surest guarantee of peace.” Since World War II, America’s
overwhelming naval presence has preserved peace in the Pacific. China is now
testing our resolve because it perceives weakness. We must correct this
perception by revitalizing our Navy and showing we are not afraid to use it.
Congress will soon take up the National Defense Authorization Act, which I
helped negotiate as a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. This
legislation would fund 10 Navy battle force ships, including one destroyer to
be built in Mississippi, and would extend the service life of older ships to
maximize our fleet. I also helped secure a $25 billion increase in overall
funding for the military. I will continue leading the effort to build a larger
Navy to preserve peace and protect American interests around the world.
You can click here to share my Op-Ed with your friends on Facebook!
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Thank you for your support,
Senator Roger Wicker
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