Maggie Goodlander Asks Military Official: What Is Our Biggest Threat In The Indo-Pacific Region?

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During a House Armed Services Committee hearing held before the congressional recess, Rep. Maggie Goodlander (D-NH) questioned Military officials about the biggest threat to the Indo-Pacific Region.

Transcript

00:00The gentleman yields back, Chair now recognizes the gentlelady from New Hampshire, Ms. Goodlander.

00:04Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you to our witnesses for being here today.

00:09Admiral, you are the commander of America's oldest and largest combatant command.

00:16I just want to begin by talking about the threats we face.

00:19Can you confirm for us what your current assessment is of the top threat to our national security

00:25that America currently faces in the Indo-Pacific region?

00:30Congresswoman, the People's Republic of China and their capabilities that they built within the People's Liberation Army

00:37are the biggest threat to the security, the freedom, and the well-being of the nation.

00:41Russia also has a sizable Pacific fleet with whom they are growing in their exercises with the PRC.

00:52I also acknowledge the threat of North Korea, which is significant and growing in cooperations

00:59with the others, and violent extremist groups as well.

01:04Thank you for that, Admiral, and thank you for your testimony on the importance of public shipyards in this country.

01:10My home state that I'm proud to represent of New Hampshire plays a central role in our maritime security,

01:16and protecting the livelihood of our shipyard workers is a top priority for me here in Congress.

01:23I want to ask you about China's growing aggression in the maritime domain.

01:30We just saw last month the threat that Chinese warships pose to our partner, Australia.

01:37How should we be thinking about China's growing naval capabilities,

01:41and who our most important partners and allies will be in addressing this line of threat?

01:47Well, thanks for affirming the role of Congresswoman.

01:50Thanks for affirming the role of public shipyards.

01:52My dear father was a shipyard worker at a shipyard that is no longer in commission.

01:56That's what he did for his life's work.

01:59So thank you for that.

02:00And Portsmouth Naval Shipyard is tops, absolutely tops.

02:04And we affirm that, and we benefit directly for that in Indo-PACOM.

02:08The People's Republic of China are building six combatants per year.

02:14They're actively building aircraft carriers, and they're getting better.

02:17They've embarked on a program of nuclear ballistic missile attack submarines.

02:24They're working on the next generation.

02:25They're working on nuclear-powered submarines in their Shang 3 series,

02:32and they're building at a high rate.

02:35But as we think about it, too, it's not just Navy on Navy,

02:40because when we say all domain, that is really the capability of the entire joint force

02:45to action that which is threatening us, and to do so in unison,

02:50to be affecting it cross-domain.

02:53So these rates of build are concerning,

02:57and we've got to pace that with the entire joint force,

03:01but that includes significantly increasing our shipmaking capability.

03:06Thank you for that.

03:08You've testified that America's network of allies and partners

03:13is our most significant asymmetric advantage in the Indo-Pacific region.

03:20We heard testimony yesterday about the importance of the role

03:24that our support for Ukraine has in deterring threats in Europe.

03:30Does our support for Ukraine deter threats in the Indo-Pacific region?

03:36Congresswoman, Russian failure and or Russian success

03:40has a direct bearing on the PRC's calculus,

03:44and they're watching very closely.

03:45So I want to ask more about how we strengthen our partners and allies.

03:53I agree with what has been said by many of my colleagues in this hearing.

03:57I'm very concerned about what impacts a global trade war

04:01against some of our most important allies in the region

04:03will have on our national security and our national defense.

04:06General, I want to ask you about South Korea.

04:09You testified just a few minutes ago

04:11that the South Korean system is working.

04:14It's in the midst of a constitutional crisis right now.

04:17What do you see?

04:18Why is that system working?

04:19What have been the most important checks in that system

04:22for the continuance of South Korea's democracy?

04:27Briefly, I will say simply that they read their rules.

04:31They understand the rule of law well.

04:34They also are following exactly what they said they were going to do.

04:38They were going to send things to a constitutional court.

04:41They were going to continue to move forward.

04:42What I would like to note is the stabilizing force

04:45that the military has been in that country,

04:48whether it be wildfires in the East

04:51or a training incident which affected a great portion of the population.

04:57The military has been able to do all the things

05:00that are necessary for that country

05:01to give time and space for their Constitution

05:04to do exactly what it said it was going to do.

05:06General, these times expire.

05:08Our share.

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