EXCLUSIVE: The new chairman of the House China Committee says there is an “alarming lack of urgency” from the Biden administration to adopt defensive measures to protect American military bases in the Indo-Pacific against potential attacks from China.
House China Committee Chairman John Moolenaar, R-Mich., who took the helm last month after the departure of Rep. Mike Gallagher, R-Wis., outlined his concerns in a letter to Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall and Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro.
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“American military bases in the Indo-Pacific are under threat. With its current strike capabilities, China can attack U.S. bases in the region, including those on U.S. territories of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands,” Moolenaar warned, adding that a new unclassified analysis suggests China “has enough weapons to overwhelm our air and missile defenses protecting those bases.”
Moolenaar warned that strikes on U.S. bases “could immobilize vital air assets, disrupt logistical chains, and significantly weaken our ability to respond in a conflict.”
Rep. John Moolenaar is now the chairman of the House Select Committee on China. (Al Drago/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Moolenaar said his committee received information that shows “an alarming lack of urgency by the Department of Defense in adopting defensive measures.”
“U.S. bases in the region have almost no hardened aircraft shelters compared to Chinese military bases,” he said. “In addition, a DoD regulation involving World War II-era munitions is substantially delaying and driving up the costs of construction projects in Guam and [the Northern Mariana Islands] aimed at building a more resilient posture for our forces to withstand Chinese attacks and continue operations.”
Moolenaar added: “We urge immediate changes.”
Moolenaar sent the letter to military leaders, along with a number of his congressional colleagues, including Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla.
Reps. Robert Wittman, R-Va., Blaine Luetkeymeyer, R-Mo., Andy Barr, R-Ky., Dan Newhouse, R-Wash., Darin LaHood, R-Ill., Neal P. Dunn, R-Fla., Jim Banks, R-Ind., Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., Michelle Steel, R-Calif., Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, and Carlos Gimenez, R-Fla., also signed onto the letter.
Moolenaar and his colleagues said U.S. bases and air assets are “highly vulnerable to Chinese strikes.”
Sen. Marco Rubio during a hearing in Washington, D.C., on March 8,…
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