Voice of America
08 Dec 2019, 11:35 GMT+10
SIMI VALLEY, CALIFORNIA - Defense Secretary Mark Esper said Saturday he still plans to shift the American military's focus to competing with China and Russia, even as security threats pile up in the Middle East.
Esper outlined his strategic goals and priorities in a speech at the Reagan National Defense Forum, an annual gathering of government, defense industry and military officials.
Esper, who became Pentagon chief in late July, said he is sticking to the national defense priorities set by his predecessor, Jim Mattis, who was sitting in his audience at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library.
Since Mattis resigned one year ago in protest of President Donald Trump's push to withdraw from Syria, the Middle East has become even more volatile. At least 14,000 additional U.S. troops have been sent to the Persian Gulf area since May out of concern about Iranian actions.
Syria itself has arguably become a more complex problem for Washington, with Turkish forces having moved into areas in the north where American forces had been partnering with Syrian Kurdish fighters against remnants of the Islamic State extremist group. Also, Iraq is facing civil protests and a violent crackdown by security forces.
The deadly shooting at a Navy base at Pensacola, Florida, on Friday by a Saudi Air Force officer could complicate U.S.-Saudi military relations, although Esper said Friday that relations remain strong.
Esper this week denied news reports that he was considering sending up to 14,000 more troops to the Middle East, but he acknowledged to reporters Friday that he is worried by instability in Iraq and Iran.
In his speech Saturday, Esper made only a passing reference to Iran, citing Tehran's "efforts to destabilize" the region.
He focused instead on shifting the U.S. military's focus toward China and Russia - "today's revisionist powers." He accused Moscow and Beijing of seeking "veto power" over the economic and security decisions of smaller nations.
On Friday, Esper said he realizes that it will be difficult to move resources out of the Middle East to increase the focus on China and Russia.
He said he has been studying the force and resource requirements for every area of the globe to determine how to rebalance those resources.
"My ambition is and remains to look at how do we pull resources - resources being troops and equipment and you name it" - from some regions and either return them to the United States or shift them to the Asia-Pacific region, he said Friday.
"That remains my ambition, but I have to deal with the world I have, and so I gotta make sure at the same time I deter conflict - in this case in the Middle East," he said. "I want to have sufficient forces there to make sure" the U.S. does not get into an armed conflict with Iran.
Get a daily dose of Manila Metro news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Manila Metro.
More InformationHONG KONG: China has fired back at the European Union in an escalating trade dispute by imposing new restrictions on medical device...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump says the United States could soon reach a trade deal with India. He believes this deal would...
DHARAMSHALA, India: The Dalai Lama is set to address a significant three-day conference of Buddhist leaders this week, coinciding with...
Taipei [Taiwan], July 8 (ANI): Taiwan's Minister of Economic Affairs, Kuo Jyh-huei, on Monday said the negotiations on the tariff between...
(Photo credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images) Anyone's Legend fought past CTBC Flying Oyster 3-1 to advance in the lower bracket of the...
TOKYO, 8th July, 2025 (WAM) -- The Bank of Japan announced on Tuesday that overall bank lending in Japan rose by 2.8 percent year-on-year...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump claimed he was unaware that the term shylock is regarded as antisemitic when he used it in...
PARIS, France: A strike by French air traffic controllers demanding improved working conditions caused significant disruptions during...
OMAHA, Nebraska: With Congress considering cuts totaling around US$1 trillion to Medicaid over the next decade, concerns are rising...
ROME, Italy: Quick thinking by emergency responders helped prevent greater devastation after a gas station explosion in southeastern...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump is drawing praise from his core supporters after halting key arms shipments to Ukraine, a...
MOSCOW, Russia: This week, Russia became the first country to officially recognize the Taliban as the government of Afghanistan since...