US military looks to allies to tackle ‘significant logistics challenge’ in Indo-Pacific

Deputy defence secretary Kathleen Hicks says US has to develop ‘combat-credible capability that can deter aggression’

But it remains unclear what obligations allies and partners would have if a conflict breaks out in the Taiwan Strait

Reading Time:3 minutes

The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier refuels at sea. Photo: US Navy

Published: 1:00am, 16 Jun 2022Updated: 9:25am, 16 Jun 2022

As China rapidly modernises its military, the United States is concerned about how those new PLA investments might be used in the Indo-Pacific region, especially in the Taiwan Strait.

Logistics are also an issue for the US when operating in waters far from American shores – something deputy defence secretary Kathleen Hicks on Monday said would be strengthened by working with allies and partners in the region.

“For the United States to be effective in the Pacific, we already know we have a significant logistics challenge, worsened by the reliance that we have on fuel,” she said at a summit organised by news website Defense One.

Deputy defence secretary Kathleen Hicks says the US has a “significant logistics challenge” to be effective in the Pacific. Photo: EPA-EFE

The US has worked closely with allies in the region, such as Japan and Australia, to ensure that – in the event of a confrontation with China – it does not make the same logistical blunders of the Russian forces in Ukraine.

“So that means we have to work very hard here at [the Department of Defence]. We have to work in close partnership with our allies and partners abroad,” Hicks said, highlighting that the US had to develop “combat-credible capability that can deter aggression”.

But it remains unclear what obligations those partners and allies would have should a conflict break out across the Taiwan Strait. The level of support would also depend on the country’s foreign policy and its economic ties with China.

Collin Koh, a research fellow with the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, said the US expected allies to be more reliable in assisting with logistics since they were bound by mutual defence treaties and political obligations.