U.S. commander raises concern over Chinese threat on Guam

The Pentagon's sense of urgency in preparation for a missile attack by Chinese military forces on Guam has been raised by China's declaration of a no-limits policy in support of Russia, said the commander of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command Adm. John C. Aquilino.

If the two nations were to demonstrate and deliver a no-limits policy, I think it means that we are in an extremely dangerous time and place in the history of humanity, if that were to come true," Aquilino said at a Washington-based think tank, Foundation for Defence of Democracies.

Aquilino said China's advances in naval ships, missile technology and nuclear capabilities were the largest military build-up since the Second World War. He said this raises the risk that Beijing's forces could attack Guam, a U.S. base in Micronesia.

He said that Guam has a 360 degree threat, so our ability to defend it and to be able to operate from there is absolutely critical. He said that I won't have a timeline so I could see continuous improvement and continuous threat, and what that leads me to do is to move with a sense of urgency.

Aquilino said in a statement he made months after China strengthened its partnership with Russia to one that has no limits and no forbidden areas. The commander said that the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command would like to see the Air Force permanently station fifth-generation aircraft closer to China. We would like to have that ability to operate in contested space. Aquilino was quoted as saying that fifth-generation capabilities, whether they are F- 22, F-35, are critical to the ability to deliver deterrence.

Aquilino said the island is still very much within the PLA range, even though Guam is far from China than the U.S. bases in Japan and Korea. Aquilino said that the PLA rocket forces are developing continuous advanced capabilities - longer range.

The commander's statement came amid reports that alternate airbase facilities are now being built on Tinian as a divert airfield for the U.S. military if Guam gets attacked.

Aquilino's statement was condemned by Beijing, which blamed the US military officers for hyping the Chinese threat. According to a report by State-backed Global Times, the officers were hoping that such statements would highlight the need for more construction of key bases such as Guam, so they can be provided with more funding to strengthen the bases' capabilities to contain China.