CIA Director William Burns said that Chinese President Xi Jinping's ambitions towards Taiwan should not be underestimated, despite the performance of Russia's military in Ukraine probably giving him pause.
The US knows “as a matter of intelligence” that Mr Xi had ordered his military to be ready to move against Taiwan by 2027, America's spy chief said.
“That does not mean that he's decided to conduct an invasion in 2027, or any other year, but it's a reminder of the seriousness of his focus and his ambition,” Mr Burns told an event at Georgetown University in Washington on Thursday.
“Our assessment at CIA is that I wouldn't underestimate President Xi's ambitions with regard to Taiwan,” he said.
He added that the Chinese leader was likely to be “surprised and unsettled” and trying to draw lessons by the “very poor performance” of the Russian military and its weapons systems in Ukraine.
In October last year, Chief of Naval Operations Admiral Michael Gilday, said Mr Xi had set a timeline for Beijing to reunify with Taiwan by 2027 — by force, if necessary — but he warned that the move could come much sooner, possibly even this year.
Mr Burns's comments came as news was breaking from the Pentagon that a Chinese “surveillance balloon” had been spotted in US skies.
The suspected spy vessel, which Beijing says is a weather balloon, has sent tension soaring between the US and China. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken on Friday postponed a planned trip to Beijing.
The CIA director made no mention of the balloon but called China the “biggest geopolitical challenge” currently faced by the US.
“Competition with China is unique in its scale, and that it really, you know, unfolds over just about every domain, not just military, and ideological, but economic, technological, everything from cyberspace to space itself as well,” he said.
“It's a global competition in ways that could be even more intense than competition with the Soviets was.”
US rhetoric on China has escalated sharply in recent years. This week, a top US Air Force general said he expected the two superpowers to be at war by 2025.
In 2021, US Navy Admiral Phil Davidson told Congress of his concerns over China's ambitions to overtake the US and said Beijing might strike Taiwan before 2027.
Reuters contributed to this report
Squid Game season two
Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
UAE%20SQUAD
%3Cp%3E%0D%3Cstrong%3EMen%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Saif%20Al%20Zaabi%2C%20Salem%20Al%20Marzooqi%2C%20Zayed%20Al%20Ansaari%2C%20Saud%20Abdulaziz%20Rahmatalla%2C%20Adel%20Shanbih%2C%20Ahmed%20Khamis%20Al%20Blooshi%2C%20Abdalla%20Al%20Naqbi%2C%20Khaled%20Al%20Hammadi%2C%20Mohammed%20Khamis%20Khalaf%2C%20Mohammad%20Fahad%2C%20Abdulla%20Al%20Arimi.%0D%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EWomen%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Mozah%20Al%20Zeyoudi%2C%20Haifa%20Al%20Naqbi%2C%20Ayesha%20Al%20Mutaiwei.%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
Key findings of Jenkins report
- Founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al Banna, "accepted the political utility of violence"
- Views of key Muslim Brotherhood ideologue, Sayyid Qutb, have “consistently been understood” as permitting “the use of extreme violence in the pursuit of the perfect Islamic society” and “never been institutionally disowned” by the movement.
- Muslim Brotherhood at all levels has repeatedly defended Hamas attacks against Israel, including the use of suicide bombers and the killing of civilians.
- Laying out the report in the House of Commons, David Cameron told MPs: "The main findings of the review support the conclusion that membership of, association with, or influence by the Muslim Brotherhood should be considered as a possible indicator of extremism."
