Thursday, January 12, 2023

U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin 'Seriously Doubt' An Imminent Invasion Of Taiwan By China

 

Reuters: 'Seriously doubt' imminent invasion of Taiwan by China -Pentagon chief 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Wednesday he seriously doubted that ramped up Chinese military activities near the Taiwan Strait were a sign of an imminent invasion of the island by Beijing. 

"We've seen increased aerial activity in the straits, we've seen increased surface vessel activity around Taiwan," Austin said during a press conference alongside U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and their Japanese counterparts. 

"But whether or not that means that an invasion is imminent, you know, I seriously doubt that," Austin said.  

Read more ....  

Update: Defense Secretary Austin 'seriously doubts' China invasion of Taiwan is 'imminent' (FOX News) 

WNU Editor: I agree with U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin's assessment that there is no evidence of an "imminent" Chinese invasion of Taiwan.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Glad to hear it.

Anonymous said...

imminent:

adjective

1) likely to occur at any moment; impending:

2) projecting or leaning forward; overhanging.


imminent
1) about to occur at any moment; impending: in imminent danger


https://www.dictionary.com/browse/imminent
https://www.thefreedictionary.com/imminent


So Austin, who is paid the big bucks, gave us a 3 day forecast. Marvelous, he is so smart.

Seriously when you us adjectives and adverbs that are not defined precisely in any language, it does not mean much, when you forecast with them.

Poll a thousand people and you will get several different answers ranging from 3 to 7 days, to a few months, or even a couple of years.

Imminent means different period of time if you are talking about different events like when the next earthquake will occur.

If his prediction is going to mean anything, it has to be stated quantitatively. Everyday language is too nebulous otherwise and politicians know this. Austin is more pol than general.

All Austin has is satellite photos, sigint and maybe some humint (newly recruited after the last fiasco). You could pick a weatherman out of the phone book, give them the info and get a more accurate forecast than Austin.