Senate confirms admiral to lead US forces in Indo-Pacific

The Senate on Wednesday confirmed a new commander for U.S. forces in the Indo-Pacific region.

In an unanimous consent vote, the Senate approved Adm. John Aquilino to be the next chief of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command (Indo-Pacom).

Aquilino, who has been the head of U.S. Pacific Fleet since May 2018, will take over command from Adm. Philip Davidson.

Aquilino will lead Indo-Pacom at a time when the region is becoming the U.S. military’s priority theater amid growing competition with China.

During his confirmation hearing, Aquilino told senators Beijing views annexing Taiwan as its “No. 1 priority” and warned that the possibility of China trying to invade the island could happen sooner than most people think.

“The rejuvenation of the Chinese Communist Party is at stake” when it comes to Taiwan, Aquilino said.

“My opinion is this problem is much closer to us than most think, and we have to take this on,” he added, advocating that a multibillion-dollar fund known as the Pacific Deterrence Initiative (PDI) be put in place “in the near term and with urgency.”

Still, Aquilino declined to endorse Davidson’s specific prediction that a Chinese invasion of Taiwan could happen in as soon as six years, saying “there’s many numbers out of there” ranging from “today to 2045.”

Indo-Pacom recently proposed Congress provide the PDI with about $4.7 billion in fiscal 2022 and about $27 billion through fiscal 2027 to fund items such as an Aegis Ashore missile defense system on Guam, upgrades to training ranges and expanded wargames.