ICYMI: Chairman McCaul Joined ABC’s “This Week” on Sunday
Washington, D.C. – House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul joined Martha Raddatz on ABC’s “This Week” today to discuss the US’s priorities in the Indo-Pacific and how the Biden administration should confront the CCP.
On sending a strong message of deterrence to our adversaries:
“As you note, it’s the first time in four decades we’ve had this deployment of submarines. And I think it’s a projection of strength that we need right now to deter aggression. We’re seeing a very aggressive, not only North Korea and the rockets they fired in the Sea of Japan, you know, but also the aggression we see from China.
“When I just came back from Taiwan, they encircled the island with ten battleships and an armada of seventy fighter jets, to threaten and intimidate us. And then I was sanctioned [by the CCP], just to illustrate how aggressive their posture is now.”
On the U.S. nuclear-armed sub in South Korea:
“North Korea needs to know that we’re there and we have superiority with the submarines, the nuclear subs. We need to get in their head, and Chairman Xi’s head, that if they do anything that’s aggressive militarily, there will be consequences to that.
“And I think it’s not by accident, but by design that you’re seeing the Pacific Command deploy these nuclear subs now for the first time in 40 years because attention has been provocative by Chairman Xi and North Korea, not by the United States, but rather by our adversaries.”
On the potential CCP invasion of Taiwan:
“And I think the reason why you’re seeing the Pacific Command fleet there is to deter and bottleneck up North Korea in the event of a conflict with Taiwan… They could fire missiles into that conflict and take them off the table while we have to deal with China and Russia and Iran.”
On China declaring themselves a “developing country” under a U.N. charter to avoid climate compliance:
“This is not fair to treat them as a [developing country]. They’re the second largest economy, superpower and the number one polluter in the planet. If we’re going to do this at all, Martha, do it right and make them comply to our terms.”
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