WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The top U.S. general said on Thursday there was a low probability that China would try to militarily take over Taiwan in the near-term and had some way to go to develop the capabilities needed.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley told lawmakers that while Taiwan was still a core national interest of China, “there’s little intent right now, or motivation, to do it militarily.”
“There’s no reason to do it militarily, and they know that. So, I think the probability is probably low, in the immediate, near-term future,” Milley said during a Congressional hearing.
“My assessment in terms of capability, I think China has a ways to go to develop the actual, no-kidding capability to conduct military operations to seize through military means the entire island of Taiwan, if they wanted to do that,” he added.
(Reporting by Idrees Ali and Phil Stewart)
