| Dear friend, China has been the Pentagon’s priority for some time. Not even Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year altered that assessment. Certainly U.S. arms shipments to Ukraine rose sharply over the last year, far exceeding anything that Washington is providing to Taipei. But containing China — and preparing for a future conflict with Beijing — remains the number one mission of U.S. military policy. It’s not surprising, then, that some China hawks in Congress have called for restoring a balance in arms shipments by sending less to Ukraine and more to Taiwan. “We should cut off U.S. military aid to Ukraine,” argues Josh Hawley (R-MO) as a first step in literally reorienting U.S. military policy. There are a number of reasons why China is not likely to attack Taiwan any time soon, despite the apocalyptic predictions of many Republicans and some Democrats. For one thing, as I write this week in my World Beat column, China is singularly focused on its economic success. An invasion of Taiwan would very likely put that success at risk. But another reason for China’s reluctance is unfolding in Ukraine. Russia’s invasion has been far from a success. Indeed, Russia now faces economic challenges, international isolation, and potential political upheaval. The more successful Ukraine is in its resistance, the less enthusiastic China will be about launching an invasion of its own. Which is why some Taiwanese representatives are not supporting Hawley and company’s proposal. “Support for Ukraine is relevant to us because, first of all, ultimately it helps to deter. It imposes costs on the aggressor,” says Taiwan’s representative in Washington. The overinflation of China’s threat, even if it has not had a major impact on military assistance to Ukraine, has been woefully influential on the U.S. military budget overall. As Ben Freeman and William Hartung write this week at FPIF, the Pentagon is using the threat of China to vastly expand its arsenal of sophisticated high-tech (and high-priced) systems. That kind of spending has driven U.S. military expenditures to higher than 144 other countries’ combined, as my colleague Ashik Siddique also reports this week. Finally, as the anti-immigrant Title 42 order ends, a wave of new anti-immigrant rhetoric has flooded much of the media. Closing us out at FPIF this week, immigration attorney Daniella Prieshoff explains how mainstream media can stop advancing these tropes in routine coverage. John Feffer
Director, FPIF | 