TAIPEI (Taiwan News)—The Pentagon is reportedly reorienting its military strategy to shift its top priority to deterring China from invading Taiwan.
The Washington Post reported on Saturday that, according to a classified internal guidance memo, US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has readjusted Washington’s military strategy to focus on deterring China from seizing Taiwan and strengthening homeland defense. Claiming limited personnel and resources, the document said the Pentagon would “assume risk" in Europe and other regions to achieve this objective.
Titled the “Interim National Defense Strategic Guidance,” the document was labeled “secret/no foreign national” in most sections and sent to US Department of Defense personnel in March and signed by Hegseth. It provides a broad framework for implementing US President Donald Trump’s vision, which emphasizes preparing for and winning a potential war against China while defending US regional interests, such as Greenland and the Panama Canal.
Both the prior Trump administration and former President Joe Biden’s administration identified China as the greatest threat to the US and called on the military to be prepared to deter war in the Pacific. What makes Hegseth’s guidance distinct is its prioritization of a potential invasion of Taiwan as the “exclusive animating scenario” that must be placed above all other potential threats, according to the report.
This shift reorganizes the US military’s vast structure beyond homeland defense and redirects its focus to the Indo-Pacific region.
The report pointed out that the Pentagon’s new “denial defense” strategy for Taiwan includes increasing deployments of submarines, bombers, unmanned naval vessels, and special forces from the Army and Marine Corps. The plan also calls for bolstering the defense of US military installations in the Indo-Pacific, stockpiling supplies, and enhancing logistics.
Although the document emphasizes support for deterring a Chinese invasion of Taiwan, it also mentions “pressuring” Taiwan to “significantly increase” its defense budget.
In addition, under this strategic guidance, the Pentagon, due to limited personnel and resources, will “assume risk in other theaters” and push European, Middle Eastern, and East Asian allies to increase their defense spending to take on greater responsibility for deterring threats from Russia, North Korea, and Iran.
Hegseth wrote, “China is the department’s sole pacing threat, and denial of a Chinese fait accompli seizure of Taiwan — while simultaneously defending the US homeland is the department’s sole pacing scenario.” When planning for large-scale warfare, the Pentagon considers conflict with China as its primary contingency, while the threat from Russia is mainly delegated to European allies.
The nine-page interim guidance has also been submitted to congressional committees overseeing national security. According to The Washington Post’s analysis, multiple passages strongly resemble a report from the conservative think tank the Heritage Foundation, with some sections nearly identical.
One of the co-authors of that report, Alexander Velez-Green, is currently serving as the Pentagon’s acting top policy official.
The Heritage Foundation’s report from last August advised the Pentagon to prioritize three core issues: deterring China from invading Taiwan, defending the US homeland, and increasing burden-sharing among allies and partners. These priorities were mirrored by Hegseth's recommendations in the memo.
