"We are in the midst of a strategic competition to shape the future of the international order."
Admiral Paparo, Commander of U.S. INDOPACOM, says China is the "only state with both the intent & the power to do so."
Eye-opening speech—I cut the 60 mins down to 5 👇
Paparo says the world is increasingly descending into chaos & disorder as China & Russia represent a pacing challenge to our security, freedom, & well-being.
"From Europe to the Middle East to the Pacific, we're seeing significant shifts in state behaviors & they are not random."
Beware a land power that turns to the sea...
"Today, in the Indo-Pacific, the PRC has turned to the sea. In its threats to Taiwan across the strait, in the South China Sea, & the East China Sea, it makes expansive & unlawful claims to waters & to features."
"A look at its maps & a passing familiarity with the United Nations Convention of the Law of the Sea exposes the absurdity of its claims & its pretzel logic.
The PRC's words & deeds are revanchist, revisionist, & expansionist." 🎯
Paparo explains that a key asymmetric advantage for the U.S. is our alliances & partnerships.
Naval power is a "consistent theme" & U.S. Navy is "no longer in a supporting role to events ashore, but in operational environments where the maritime domain is the locus of conflict."
"We are in the middle of another epochal change & that is the dawn of the information revolution."
Whoever competes best in this, adapts better, is able to combine data, computing power, & AI—& who can win the first battle (likely in space, cyber, & info domain)—shall prevail.
The Admiral stresses the importance of closing the kill chain effectively & efficiently to achieve decision superiority...
"The ability to see, understand, decide, & act more accurately, more focused, & faster than the adversary. This is the first & the most decisive battle."
"If we are doing our jobs, we will deter that war by building & demonstrating combat power. There's no bluffing it.
And if we do our jobs right—history will never know our names. & this is the goal: to deter, to prevail, who learns, adapts faster, survives & thrives."
Solid List to follow if you’re interested in this stuff:
“We are living in consequential times, a period of intense competition & high stakes.”
“We cannot normalize this intentional malign behavior by the PRC, which we see in the form of territorial aggression against its neighbors, including unprofessional & unsafe behavior at sea.”
• • •
Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to
force a refresh
As of yesterday, Reuters reports that 90+ Chinese ships are operating in the region - down from 100+ earlier this week - surpassing China's "mass naval deployment in December last year" in the "largest maritime show of force to date."
A high-level visual (notes + sources below):
“The Chinese ships have massed in waters stretching from the southern part of the Yellow Sea through the East China Sea and down into the contested South China Sea, as well as into the Pacific, according to four security officials in the region.
Their accounts were corroborated by intelligence reports from a country in the region, which detailed the deployment. Reuters reviewed the reports on condition it did not name the country.
As of Thursday morning, there are more than 90 Chinese ships operating in the region, coming down from more than 100 at one point earlier this week, the documents showed.
The operations exceed China's mass naval deployment in December last year that prompted Taiwan to raise its alert level, the sources said.”
The Hainan amphibious task group was last spotted ~500nm north of Palau. Australia is closely tracking the ATG but it’s unclear how far south the group will transit. @SinoTalk unpacks why the PLA might conduct a second circumnavigation op and what it would look like:
Yesterday, the U.S. announced Operation Southern Spear to "remove narco-terrorists from our hemisphere." With the Ford carrier strike group now on station in SOUTHCOM, the U.S. could launch land strikes at any time.
w/ @SA_Defensa
"Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine returned to the White House on Friday for a second consecutive day of deliberations centered on potential military action in Venezuela, as U.S. forces in the region prepared for possible attack orders.
It remains unclear if President Donald Trump has decided to pursue such an escalation, though high-level discussions over whether to strike Venezuela — and how — have been underway for days...
An administration official said 'a host of options' have been presented to the president." (WaPo)
Many moving pieces in SOUTHCOM as the Ford Carrier Strike Group steams toward the Caribbean & POTUS considers striking land targets in Venezuela.
Visualizing U.S. force posture, w/ illustrative Tomahawk Land Attack Missile & Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile strike packages:
On 24 October, the Gerald R. Ford Carrier Strike Group (GRFCSG) and embarked carrier air wing were directed to the U.S. Southern Command area of responsibility. Open source flight tracking data indicates its journey across the Atlantic is likely underway. @MT_Anderson
SOUTHCOM Snapshot: Potential strike package with a TLAM (Tomahawk Land Attack Missile) loadout via @vcdgf555
POTUS has options.
The U.S. has deployed a considerable naval and expeditionary force to the Caribbean (U.S. Southern Command/4th Fleet AOR), providing POTUS with a wide range of military options to use against Venezuela or other non-state actors in the region. Catch up on everything that’s happened:
"The IWO ARG – 22nd MEU(SOC) is America’s 9-1-1 force—lethal, capable, and adaptable—ready to respond to contingency missions around the globe. This force operates 24/7, reassuring our Allies and partners; deterring our adversaries; keeping the world’s oceans free and open in accordance with international standards; and projecting power on a global scale through sustained operations at sea."
- USNI identified the guided-missile cruiser assigned to the task force, USS Lake Erie (CG 70), now operating in U.S. 4th Fleet
- IWOARG is underway en route to SOUTHCOM: USS Iwo Jima (LHD 7) + USS Fort Lauderdale (LPD 28) left Norfolk yesterday; USS San Antonio (LPD 17) departed today
- USS Gravely (DDG 107), USS Jason Dunham (DDG 109), and USS Minneapolis-St. Paul (LCS 21) are on station in the Caribbean; USS Sampson (DDG 102) is still south of Panama
- The fast attack sub remains unidentified, but several have been active off the east coast in August