WASHINGTON – President Biden launched a Pentagon review of the national security aspects of the government’s strategy for China, as part of a broader government effort to determine its approach to fighting Beijing.
Biden described the effort on Wednesday, during his first visit as commander-in-chief to the Pentagon, where he met with Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Mark Milley, and other senior officials.
A China task force will study the military footprint in Asia, technology, intelligence, the role of allies and partnerships and other areas of the strategy, government officials said.
The group will work in the coming months and will be led by Austin’s chief assistant in China, Ely Ratner, a longtime Biden advisor and expert in China. The task force will include more than a dozen civilians and military officers from across the Department of Defense, including policy officials and members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, officials said. She is expected to give Austin a series of recommendations in early summer, a US official said.
The idea behind the task force is to coordinate the various functions of the government, including economic, political, diplomatic and military aspects, to form a coherent policy to combat China, seen as the main US rival in economic, political and security, officials said. .