March 10, 2020
The Case for a Pacific Deterrence Initiative
When war broke out in Ukraine in 2014 the Department of Defense moved swiftly to invest billions in near-term enhancements in Europe to address growing military-operational shortfalls. The European Reassurance Initiative, later renamed the European Deterrence Initiative, invested $22 billion since then in increased presence, exercises, prepositioning, infrastructure, and partner capacity efforts all focused on ensuring the U.S. military and its NATO partners have the right capabilities in position to deter Russia. The Defense Department requested an additional $4.5 billion for the initiative in its new budget request for 2021.
No similar initiative, or urgency, exists for the Indo-Pacific.
Read the full article in War on the Rocks.
More from CNAS
-
The United States Can’t Afford the Brutal Price of Chinese Solar Panels
Commentary
Buying Chinese solar panels to reduce emissions is like using gas to put out a fire....
By Henry Wu
-
Israel’s growing ties to China are testing its relationship with the U.S.
Commentary
As a sovereign, high-tech, democratic powerhouse, Israel has a fundamental stake in the contest between China and the free world....
By David Feith
-
Bipartisan support for taking on China goes only so far
Commentary
The embrace of great-power competition comes with a critical caveat. Both parties’ enthusiasm for the concept abruptly ends when it requires doing something politically hard....
By Vance Serchuk
-
How the Afghanistan Withdrawal Costs the U.S. With China
Commentary
U.S. departure from Kabul could end up undermining, rather than strengthening, America’s strategic hand against China....
By Richard Fontaine & Vance Serchuk
