In a shocking revelation of information input, US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director William Burns stated that China is still deciding whether the prospective invasion of Taiwan will be effective.
According to him, American information indicates that Chinese President Xi Jinping has directed his country’s military to “be ready by 2027” to attack Taiwan.
Yet, given Russia’s experience in invading Ukraine, Putin may be doubting his capacity to do so – which is likely to increase worries among Chinese leader Xi Jinping and top military officials about the success of the Chinese force invading Taiwan.
“We do know, as has been made public, that President Xi has told the PLA, the Chinese military command, to be ready to invade Taiwan by 2027, but it does not indicate that he has decided to attack in 2027 or any other year,” Burns said in a television interview aired on February 26.
“I think our assessment is that President Xi and his military chiefs have questions today about their ability to carry out that invasion,” he added. Yet, even if armed war is not unavoidable, the US must take Xi’s intention to eventually dominate Taiwan “extremely seriously,” he stressed.
Burns added that the US and European allies’ backing for Ukraine following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of that country may be a deterrent to Chinese authorities, but that the dangers of an assault on Taiwan would only rise.
“I believe they’ve certainly reinforced some of those worries as they’ve looked at Putin’s experience in Ukraine,” Burns added. “So, all I’d say is that I believe the dangers of, you know, the possible use of force increase as we progress through this decade and, beyond it, into the following decade. So it is something we are clearly keeping a close eye on.”
Burns believes that since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the United States and Europe’s assistance to Ukraine demonstrates Western unity, which the Chinese Communist Party may also evaluate. “I don’t think there is a foreign leader who has studied Putin’s experience in Ukraine, the growth of the conflict, more closely than Xi Jinping. “I think what he witnessed troubled him in many ways,” Burns added. He (Xi Jinping) was taken aback by Russia’s dismal military performance. I believe he was astounded by the extent of Western unity and support for Ukraine.”
Burns further stated that not just the US but also European partners are prepared to pay a certain economic price in order to give Russia more economic damage over time. “Thus, to some extent, I believe all of this is true. Xi Jinping is no longer drunk.”
One of the issues increasing strain in US-China ties is the Taiwan issue. According to the Wall Street Journal, the US is considerably boosting the number of troops deployed in Taiwan, more than quadrupling its existing strength, to support Taiwan’s military training program. According to American sources, the US aims to send 100 to 200 troops to Taiwan in the next months, up from approximately 30 a year ago. The extra garrison will enhance a training program that the Pentagon has been reluctant to make public as the US strives to provide Taiwan with the defense assets it requires.
According to the study, the increase of training for Taiwan officers and troops by the US and Taiwan demonstrates that the US is becoming more dedicated to assisting Taiwan, a close partner, in preparing for the defeat of the CCP’s future invasion. US officials said preparations to increase army presence in Taiwan have been in the works for months, even before last month’s balloon incident strained relations between the US and China. After violating American territory, a Chinese surveillance balloon was shot down by US airplanes above the coast of South Carolina.