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To: DJBEINO who wrote (7061)	3/8/2000 12:43:00 AM
From: DJBEINO	Respond to of 9582

China Lacks Might to Take Over Taiwan -US Admiral By Jim Wolf WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The head of U.S. forces in the Pacific said on Tuesday that China lacked the military might to invade and control Taiwan and that it was unlikely Beijing would use force against the island in the near future. The United States, China and Taiwan each have adjusted their military deployments ahead of Taiwan's March 18 presidential election, but no one is preparing for major action, Adm. Dennis Blair, commander-in-chief of the Hawaii-based Pacific Command, said. He rated as ``fairly low' the likelihood of any near-term use of force by China against Taiwan, which Beijing regards as a renegade province. He told a Pentagon news conference that deployment patterns were ``fairly normal' for now. ``There are some small variations but none of us is preparing for major military moves there, and that's good,' he said. He did not discuss details of any buildups by Taiwan or China nor any U.S. precautions to head off potential trouble. Blair said China lacked the military might to take Taiwan and hold it. ``That's the military reality underlying where we are right now,' he said. Asked how long it would take China to prevail militarily over Taiwan, he replied: ``It depends what Taiwan and we do.' Taiwan is seeking to buy at least two U.S. destroyers equipped with ``Aegis' fire control systems capable of shooting down aircraft and missiles in flight, U.S. officials said privately. Shortly after Blair spoke, the Defense Department announced that Taiwan was seeking to buy 162 U.S.-built ``Hawk' anti-aircraft missiles and equipment needed to upgrade an aging anti-aircraft radar system for $202 million. The Pentagon notified Congress, which has veto power over such arms transfers. But the proposals are modest compared to previous transfers of F-16 fighter jets and other U.S. military equipment sold to Taiwan over the years. China has fiercely opposed any attempts to boost the strength of Taiwan, the refuge of Nationalists who lost the Chinese civil war to the Communists in 1949. President Clinton said on Tuesday that he had not been briefed on any new Taiwan arms requests. ``Any decision I make has to be made consistent with the Taiwan Relations Act and with our general policy in the area,' he said in reply to a reporter's question. The 1979 Taiwan Relations Act says a threat to Taiwan would be a matter of ``grave concern' to the United States and would be considered a threat to the peace and security of the western Pacific. Blair voiced opposition to the so-called Taiwan Security Enhancement Act, legislation approved by the Republican-led House of Representatives last month to strengthen U.S. support of Taiwan. ``I think it adds to the general raising of tension and takes away from peaceful solutions,' he said, matching the White House line. Blair visited China last month after Beijing, in a Feb. 22 policy statement, threatened to use force against Taiwan if the island postponed reunification talks indefinitely. Citing his talks in Beijing and Nanjing, capital of the Chinese military region facing Taiwan, Blair said: ``I do not get the sense that there is a near-term belief on their part that there is a military solution to this problem.' ``Taiwan's military maintains a qualitative edge over the PLA (the Chinese People's Liberation Army), and its combat capabilities should improve steadily over time as it incorporates new weapons into its war-fighting doctrine and training,' he told the Senate Armed Services Committee earlier in the day. ``The PLA still lacks the capability to invade and control Taiwan,' he said. ``It does, however, have the ability to inflict significant damage to Taiwan with its military forces.' In March 1996 China fired M-9 ballistic missiles near Taiwan's main ports to scare voters in the island's first direct presidential elections away from supporting any formal declaration of independence. The United States responded by sending two aircraft carrier battle groups to the area, its largest deployment in the region since the Vietnam War ended 25 years ago.