Hong Kong, May 16 (CNA) Despite Beijing's threats against Taiwan, its army is not deployed in any way that is threatening to Taiwan, the commander of the US Pacific Fleet said on Tuesday.
Stopping off in Hong Kong on his way to Thailand with his fleet for joint military exercises, Adm. Thomas Fargo told a meeting of the Hong Kong Asia Society that even if Taiwan's President-elect Chen Shui-bian snubs Beijing's "one China" policy in his inauguration speech on May 20, a military conflict is unlikely.
The commander of the world's largest combined fleet said that the People's Liberation Army is not poised for a strike against Taiwan.
Fargo said that even if they intend to take the island by force, he doubted that they have the "tremendously robust" capability for a successful invasion of Taiwan.
Although Beijing is improving the capability of the mainland Chinese navy, the difficult military task of crossing the 90-mile-wide Taiwan Strait to take Taiwan is simply beyond their reach now, Fargo continued.
Right now, Taiwan's forces are not deployed in a way that reflects any concern, and "our own deployments are very normal," said Fargo.
Stressing that a stable mainland China is an anchor for a peaceful and prosperous Asia, Fargo reiterated Washington's calls for constructive dialogue between Taiwan and mainland China and a peaceful resolution of their disputes through negotiation rather than force. (By Su Cheng-hui & Maubo Chang)
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