On Friday (April 30), U.S. Navy Admiral John Aquilino (Aquilino) succeeded Admiral Phil Davidson as Commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. In his speech, Aquilino thanked Taiwan Navy Commander Liu Chi-pin and others who attended the ceremony by name.
The Indo-Pacific Commander transition ceremony was held April 30 at Joint Base Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. Aquilino had said at the Senate nomination hearing that the threat of a Chinese Communist invasion of Taiwan is serious and more imminent than many people understand.
The Central News Agency reported that according to a message published by the Indo-Pacific Command, Aquilino pointed out that for more than 75 years, the partnership between the United States and like-minded allies has created an environment in which all nations can prosper, based on an international order that starts with the rule of law and allows both large and small nations to peacefully resolve disputes and disagreements and maintain regional stability, but that such an environment is now being challenged.
Aquilino said the Indo-Pacific is the most important region for the future of the United States, with the most significant security challenges, and will become a priority theater of war for the United States.
He also said Indo-Pacific Command will uphold Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s orders, commit to defending the nation, strengthen relationships with allies and partners, provide deterrence against conflicts of power, and, when ordered, will be able to fight and win immediately, as well as carry out the national interest, cooperate to the best of its ability and, if necessary, stand up to ensure a free and open Indo-Pacific.
Aquilino’s speech included a special acknowledgement of senior representatives of foreign militaries, including Taiwan Navy Commander Liu Chi-bin, South Korea’s Joint Staff Headquarters (JSC) Chairman Won In-chul, Japan’s Self Defense Force Chief of Staff Yamazaki Koji, and Australian Navy Commander Michael Noonan.
The U.S. side only released Aquilino’s own speech and photos of the handover of the old and new commanders, which the ROC Navy Command did not confirm. It is unclear whether Liu and other foreign admirals attended the ceremony in person or by video message.
John Aquilino was born in 1962 in Huntington, Long Island, New York. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1984 with a bachelor’s degree in physics, then joined the Naval Fighter Weapons School for flight training and received his pilot’s wing in August 1986, officially becoming a fighter pilot.
John Aquilino’s position at the time of his nomination was Commander, Pacific Fleet. Pacific Fleet is the naval force command element of the Indo-Pacific Command, headquartered at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, under the U.S. Navy’s 3rd and 7th Fleets. Aquilino transferred to the position from Commander, Central Command Naval Forces on May 17, 2018. At the time, Vice Admiral Aquilino was nominated by Trump (Trump) and then approved by congressional hearings.
Aquilino said the U.S. needs to increase its military commitment to the Indo-Pacific region and vigorously promote the Pacific Deterrence Initiative to counter Chinese Communist influence.
“The Pacific Deterrence Initiative, which grew out of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 passed by Congress in 2020, includes a separate $1.4 billion Pacific Deterrence Initiative (PDI) fund to be used for the purpose. Initiative (PDI) funds to enhance the missile defense capabilities of U.S. forces in the Pacific, increase the forward deployment posture of U.S. forces in the Indo-Pacific region, and strengthen Indo-Pacific alliances and partnerships by improving interconnectivity, interoperability, interoperability and information-sharing capabilities, among other purposes.
During his March 23 confirmation hearing, Aquilino told the Senate Armed Services Committee that China (the Chinese Communist Party) considers restoring control over Taiwan its “number one priority. He told the Senate Armed Services Committee, “I think this issue is more imminent than most people think, and we have to take it seriously.”
Aquilino said the threat is so great that the U.S. needs to implement a proposed $27 billion program to strengthen U.S. defenses in the region (Indo-Pacific and Taiwan Strait) “in the short term and on an emergency basis.
He stressed that if the Chinese Communist Party violates Taiwan, the strategic location of Taiwan is crucial from a military point of view, and 2/3 of global trade could be affected as a result; secondly, it would damage the credibility of the United States with Asian allies such as Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and the Philippines.
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