By: Aaron Mehta
ABOARD THE USS CARL VINSON – The US will seek to “sharpen our military edge” in the Pacific even as it hopes China will improve relations with its neighbors, Secretary of Defense Ash Carter said today.
As a result, Carter today announced what he described as a “third wave” of the Obama administration’s rebalance to the Pacific, commonly referred to as the “Pacific Pivot.”
As he has in every speech focused on the Pacific since taking over as secretary, Carter attempted to thread the needle between criticizing China for its aggressiveness in the South China Sea while holding out a hand towards the Asian power.
“Everyone gets a voice [in the region], and no one is excluded -- and by the way, that includes China, and its military, and we hope China doesn’t exclude itself,” Carter said in prepared remarks. Defense News is travelling with Carter this week as he heads to a meeting of the defense ministers from the ASEAN nations.
“The United States still has serious concerns with some of China’s recent actions on the seas, in cyberspace, and elsewhere,” Carter added. “Beijing sometimes appears to want to pick and choose which principles it wants to benefit from and which it prefers to try to undercut.”
But in order to assure the US and its interests remain secure in the region, the Pentagon is focused on modernizing capabilities that fit the wide distances of the Pacific. That includes the well-known Air Force modernization trio of the KC-46A tanker, B-21 bomber and F-35 joint strike fighter, as well as investments in undersea drones and advanced torpedoes.
Carter also pledged “a few surprises” on the technological front, perhaps referring to capabilities under development by the Strategic Capabilities Office, whose head, William Roper, told reporters last month that they are trying to broadcast some new technologies in order to deter potential near-peer adversaries.
“I can’t share all the details on these for obvious reasons, but what our friends and our potential adversaries – and all of you – should know is that these new capabilities will help us keep our decades-old commitment to undergirding security in the Asia-Pacific,” Carter said.
In the meantime, the Obama administration is launching a “third phase” of the rebalance, which comes with a trio of focus areas.
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