US general says the Chinese attack on Taiwan is not coming

US general says the Chinese attack on Taiwan is not coming.

According to the senior US general, the US is watching “extremely intently.” Still, an assault by China on Taiwan is not imminent.

General Mark Milley told the BBC that while China is building the capacity to strike at some time, the decision to do so would be political.

According to China, Taiwan is a separatist province that must be united with the mainland, maybe via force.

It has said it would “resolutely demolish” any effort to back Taiwan’s independence and has accused the US of doing so. China and the US, Taiwan’s most important ally, have lately increased tension noticeably.

While the US has dispatched navy ships into Taiwan’s waters, China has launched dozens of airplanes into Taiwan’s air defense zone.

US President Joe Biden said in May that China’s nearly flying of jets over Taiwan made it “flirting with danger.” If the island was attacked, he swore he would defend it with force.

In response, Beijing said that it “would not hesitate to battle” to stop Taiwan from officially declaring independence, accusing the US of “violating its commitment to Taiwan” and “interfering” in China’s internal affairs.

Gen. Milley, the head of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, responded to a question on whether he believed China would invade Taiwan by saying,

“Could, should, would, those are critical words there. I believe China is building competence in this area. President Xi [Jinping] has challenged the PLA [China’s People’s Liberation Army] to build the capacity to attack Taiwan at some point. He has made this statement in public forums and speeches.