China’s extraordinary aggression makes the protection of American troops and weaponry an urgent priority. The Congressional Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party reports that this is not being done. We present their report.
In an urgent letter to Air Force and Navy leaders, Chairman John Moolenaar (R-MI) of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) and colleagues have expressed deep concerns that U.S. military bases may not be able to defend against growing Chinese military threats. In the letter, the lawmakers highlight preliminary research showing that over the past decade, China built more than 400 hardened aircraft shelters while the United States built just 22 in the Indo-Pacific.
Hardened aircraft shelters are reinforced hangars used to protect military aircraft and will be critical as the United States looks to safeguard its assets in the Indo-Pacific.
The lawmakers identified shortcomings in DoD military construction priorities and note that the United States spends hardly any money on base resilience military construction projects in the Indo-Pacific at the very moment China is undergoing one of the most rapid military buildups in history. They also call attention to an onerous DoD regulation that is significantly delaying critical construction projects and adversely affecting U.S. military posture in the region.
The lawmakers requested that the Pentagon respond to the following questions:
What steps have you taken to incorporate and enhance passive defenses to protect our bases and forces in the Indo-Pacific, including in Alaska, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, Hawaii, Minor Outlying Islands, and allied and partner territory?
What plans do you have to create hardened aircraft shelters, underground bunkers, and other hardened facilities to protect aircraft, equipment, and forces operating out of U.S. bases in the Indo-Pacific?
What additional hardened infrastructure, reconstitution, camouflage, concealment, and deception projects and programs could enhance the passive defenses of U.S. critical assets and forces in the Indo-Pacific?
Do you plan to request additional funding for base resilience construction projects, including hardened aircraft shelters, underground bunkers, and dispersed and/or redundant facilities? If so, please explain.
Has the Department assessed options to increase efficiency and speed for executing military construction so that such critical projects do not take years to complete?
Will you grant the Joint Region Marianas an exemption from following “Munitions and Explosives of Concern” procedures for military construction?
Will you implement “Recognize, Retreat, Report” procedures as the baseline for military construction throughout the Indo-Pacific?
They note that while the Pentagon accurately classified the PRC as the “pacing challenge,” why does the Department’s budget not reflect its rhetoric on the PRC?
The lawmakers warned that with its current strike capabilities, China can attack all U.S. bases in the region, targeting U.S. service members from Okinawa to those on U.S. territories of Guam and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI).
In fact, unclassified analysis suggests China has enough weapons to overwhelm our air and missile defenses protecting those bases.1 Strikes on U.S. bases could immobilize vital air assets, disrupt logistical chains, and significantly weaken our ability to respond in a conflict. Passive defenses, such as hardened aircraft shelters and dispersal of forces, may offer the most cost-effective way of strengthening our bases and improving their resilience.
They expressed deep concern over the alarming lack of urgency by the Department of Defense (DoD) in adopting such defensive measures. U.S. bases in the region have almost no hardened aircraft shelters compared to Chinese military bases. In addition, a DoD regulation involving World War II-era munitions is substantially delaying and driving up the costs of construction projects in Guam and CNMI aimed at building a more resilient posture for our forces to withstand Chinese attacks and continue operations.
According to members of the Select Committee, “The result is that critical U.S. air assets are highly vulnerable to Chinese strikes. Unsurprisingly, in recent war games simulating a conflict with China over Taiwan, 90 percent of U.S. aircraft losses occurred on the ground, rather than from air combat.
They note that “While active defenses such as air and missile defense systems are an important part of base and force protection, their high cost and limited numbers mean the U.S. will not be able to deploy enough of them to fully protect our bases.
The Report concludes tomorrow