Senior US general warns of possible war with China

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A four-star US Air Force general warned of a possible conflict with China, which he said could take place as early as 2025, citing Taiwan as the most likely reason for the conflict and urging his commanders to strive for maximum operation battle readiness among their suits by the end of this year.

In an internal memo that initially emerged on social media on Friday before being later confirmed as genuine by the Pentagon, the head of the Air Mobility Command, General Mike Minihan, said the main goal should be deterring "and, if required, defeating" China. He said he hoped he was "wrong. My gut tells me we will fight in 2025."

According to Minihan, Taiwan's 2024 presidential elections could provide Chinese President Xi Jinping with a reason to move against Taiwan as the United States is distracted by its own presidential race.

"Xi's team, reason, and opportunity are all aligned for 2025," he claimed.

Furthermore, the memo calls on all Mobile Command personnel to go to the firing range, "fire a clip" into a target, and "aim for the head."

This comes amid reports from senior Biden administration officials claiming that China has been expediting its plans to take over Taiwan.

China held major military exercises in August, which were claimed by the West to have been a trial run for China to conduct an offensive against Taiwan after then-US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited the island despite warnings from Beijing.

The United States official switched its recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979, though it uses Taiwan as a market for its arms under the pretext of providing the island with the tools to "defend" itself.

Last month, a US State Department notice obtained by Bloomberg said the US has offered Taiwan to buy up to 100 of its most up-to-date Patriot air-defense missiles. The batch will also include radar and related equipment, the report stated. The total amount of the transaction is estimated at $882 million.

In June, Taiwan applauded Washington's approval of the fourth arms sale in the amount of $120 million of naval weaponry, which the two partners said would improve the island's "combat preparedness" and ability to collaborate with American forces.

Then in September, the Biden administration announced the sale of $1.1bln worth of arms to Taiwan within the framework of three contracts. The largest contract is owed to a $655 million logistics package for the Taiwanese surveillance radar program.

The US previously supplied ammunition to Taiwan with a value of $120 million last June as well. China opposed and condemned the sale, saying it "seriously undermines" US-China relations, as well as peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait. 

Back in December, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken warned that a crisis in the Taiwan Strait will bear 'devastating' outcomes for the global economy, which is already in dire straits. 

Meanwhile, the Taiwanese Foreign Ministry stated that US Senator Todd Young and Taiwanese Foreign Minister Jaushieh Joseph Wu expressed optimism for a stronger US-Taiwan collaboration.

"They reiterated Taiwan’s pivotal role in regional security and the global economy at this critical geopolitical juncture and eagerly anticipated ever stronger partnership between our countries," the Ministry tweeted.

This is in light of the US-Taiwan Initiative on 21st-Century Trade, which was formed by both Washington and Taipei last June as an attempt "to establish ways to deepen the joint economic and trade relationship."