US takes aim at China with Indo-Pacific military spending plans: analysts

Name: Taiwan deploys its most advanced F-16V fighter jets amid rising military tensions with Beijing
Uploaded: 2021-12-10T13:00:20.000Z
Duration: 1 min 15 s
Description: Taiwan deploys its most advanced F-16V fighter jets amid rising military tensions with Beijing

Washington’s defence bill includes US$7 billion for new Pacific Deterrence Initiative

Funds indicate US intends to build more outposts and strengthen military logistics in the region, observer says

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The US House of Representatives has endorsed US$7.1 billion in funding for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. Photo: US Navy

Minnie Chan

Published: 9:00pm, 10 Dec 2021

US plans to channel US$7.1 billion in defence spending to the Indo-Pacific region in the next financial year to counter a rising China will escalate confrontation between the two powers, analysts say.

The spending package was part of the National Defence Authorisation Act, or NDAA, passed by the US House of Representatives on Thursday. The bill will move on to the Senate for final passage by the end of this week.

The legislation earmarks US$768 billion for national defence, including US$7.1 billion for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative (PDI), a US$2.1 billion increase in the Pentagon’s initial request.

The PDI is a six-year, US$27 billion plan to increase US strength in the Indo-Pacific, including in missile defence systems, logistics and collaboration with regional allies.

The funds will be spent on flights and voyages to “sustain a baseline steady state presence” in the Indo-Pacific, according to the summary of the bill, with plans to add new capabilities and initiatives down the track.

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Taiwan deploys its most advanced F-16V fighter jets amid rising military tensions with Beijing

Zhao Tong, a senior fellow at the Carnegie-Tsinghua Centre for Global Policy in Beijing, said the funding indicated that the US was determined to confront China head-on in terms of military might, as the two countries diverged over Taiwan and the South China Sea.

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