The U.S. Army has officially released a white paper, “Army Multi-Domain Transformation – Preparing to Win Competition and Conflict,” issued by Army Chief of Staff Adm. James McConville. The white paper states that China is the most enduring strategic challenge and is likely to achieve military parity with the U.S. military by 2040. The U.S. Army will expand multiple multi-domain task forces and deploy them to areas within the first island chain.
The white paper asserts that U.S. national interests now face an unprecedented set of challenges as China and Russia continue to challenge the rules-based international order and prepare to replace the United States globally. It asserts that by 2040, China and Russia will weaponize all instruments of national power to undermine the collective will of the United States, its allies and partners, while building their own security partnerships. This will lead to the emergence of an unstructured international environment in which the line between conflict and peace becomes blurred. As Chinese and Russian militaries continue to modernize, it will become increasingly difficult for joint U.S. forces to deter their illegal and aggressive behavior.
The white paper warns that while the U.S. military retains an advantage now, it may be fleeting. As adversaries exploit U.S. vulnerabilities and build “anti-access/area denial” capabilities in a variety of asymmetric ways, making it difficult for U.S. forces to project military power. To meet these challenges, the transformation of the U.S. Army is imminent.
Multi-domain Task Force to be deployed to the first island chain
The white paper proposes that the U.S. Army will form five multi-domain task forces in the future: two to be assigned to Indo-Pacific Command, one to be assigned to European Command, one to be deployed in the Arctic, and one to be deployed in the homeland as a reserve force. A multi-domain task force is assigned to four battalions, including: an intelligence, information, cyber, electronic warfare and space battalion; a strategic fires battalion; an air defense battalion; and a support battalion.
The white paper also emphasizes that the Indo-Pacific Command’s Multi-Domain Task Force will be pre-positioned in areas within the first island chain as a key to effective joint defense, and will employ anti-ship, air defense and ground-to-ground missiles to destroy adversary forces as early as possible.
Washington Develops Plan to Invest in Semiconductors
In addition to the military, U.S. Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo said in an interview with U.S. media on 25 May that the United States is developing a strategy to counter China. The Biden administration is focused on “developing a comprehensive strategy to protect American workers and level the playing field for U.S. businesses, precisely to counter China, whose actions are threatening U.S. Security, prosperity and values.”
Raimondo said that in order to compete with China, the U.S. needs to invest in more manufacturing and more technology in the lagging semiconductor sector; it also plans to re-examine and allow some U.S. companies to be exempt from tariffs on raw materials imported from China.
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