US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has declared the potential conflict with China over Taiwan a priority for the US military in a classified national defense guidance document, the Washington Post reported, citing its contents.
The US is concerned about “coercive actions“ of China against Taiwan.
According to the publication, the secret document, called the “Interim Strategic Guidelines for National Defense“, was signed by the head of the Pentagon and distributed to the Department of Defense in mid-March.
According to the newspaper, the US administration during the first term of Donald Trump and the Joe Biden administration “characterized China as the greatest threat to the United States and focused forces on preparing for and deterring conflict in the Pacific region“. But Hegseth's guidance is "unusual because it treats a potential invasion of Taiwan as an exceptional scenario that should take precedence over other potential threats," the article said. "This would reorient the broader U.S. military architecture toward the Indo-Pacific region, moving beyond the nation's defense mission." "China is the only persistent threat to the U.S. Department of Defense. Preventing a forceful takeover of Taiwan by Beijing while protecting the United States is the only scenario the department has in mind," Hegseth was quoted as saying in the article. "As the newspaper noted, the new, secret Pentagon guidance calls for strengthening Taiwan's defense capabilities." For this purpose, it is planned to deploy additional submarines, bombers, drones, as well as ground forces and the Marine Corps in the region, the article says.
In addition, it is recommended to create additional arsenals of weapons in the region in advance, paying particular attention to bunker-busting aerial bombs, the publication says.
The United States also plans to influence the Taiwanese administration to increase the share of military spending from the current 2.5% to 10% of GDP, the article says.
According to The Washington Post, some parts of the nine-page document are the same or almost identical to the report of "Project 2025", which was published in August 2024 by the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation. The private foundation's document suggests that the Pentagon prioritize three key issues: "deterring an invasion of Taiwan; protecting U.S. territory; redistributing the burden of military spending to increase the contribution of allies."
As the newspaper emphasizes, the Pentagon chief's secret document has caused misunderstanding in Congress. According to a source there, lawmakers are concerned about the Heritage Foundation's obvious influence in it.
The article states that the Pentagon and the Heritage Foundation did not respond to requests from The Washington Post to comment on the information presented in the article.
The publication also emphasizes that U.S. President Donald Trump has previously repeatedly denied allegations that there are similarities between his political program for a second term and the "Project 2025" report.