President Biden and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Wednesday stood up a “China Task Force” inside the Pentagon to serve as a central hub for all “policies, programs and processes” on China-related issues.
The 15-member task force, which will be made up of uniformed and civilian Defense Department officials, underscores the importance of the U.S.-China dynamic in 21st-century geopolitics and how competition between the two global powers is the greatest long-term foreign policy challenge facing Washington.
“We need to meet the growing threat posed by China,” Mr. Biden said during a speech at the Pentagon. “It’ll require a whole-of-government effort, bipartisan cooperation in Congress, and strong alliances and partnerships. That’s how we’ll meet the China challenge and ensure the American people win the competition of the future.”
The task force will be led by Ely Ratner, who currently serves as a special assistant to the secretary of defense and formerly was executive vice president at the Center for a New American Security.
From 2015 to 2017, Mr. Ratner was deputy national security adviser to then-Vice President Biden.
The task force, officials said, will focus on a variety of topics, including U.S. strategy, technology and force structure, intelligence, defense relations with China, alliances and partnerships, and others.
“The task force will align its recommendations with interagency partners to ensure DoD continues to support the whole-of-government approach toward China,” the Pentagon said in a fact sheet explaining the task force and its purpose.
The task force will deliver recommendations to Mr. Austin within four months, officials said.