Republicans slam Pentagon plan to pull permanent F-15 force from Okinawa

Republican lawmakers have criticised a plan by the Pentagon to replace F-15 fighter jets permanently based in Okinawa with a temporary rotating force, saying it would send the wrong signal to China about US deterrence.

The criticism followed a report in the Financial Times that the US air force would withdraw two squadrons of F-15 Eagles from Kadena air force base in Okinawa, as part of a modernisation programme.

The air force will temporarily replace the 48 F-15s with more advanced F-22 stealth fighters from Alaska, but critics have raised concern that the Pentagon has not established a long-term solution to replace the jets in Japan.

In a letter to US defence secretary Lloyd Austin, Marco Rubio, the Republican vice-chair of the Senate intelligence committee, and Mike Gallagher, an influential Republican congressman, said the plan to replace the jets in the short term with rotational deployments would “lead to a tangible reduction in American forward combat power in the Indo-Pacific”.

They said it would result in “lowering the bar for aggression and demonstrating a continuing mismatch between the Biden administration’s talking points on the Indo-Pacific and America’s actual commitments in the region”.

“We are concerned that the Department of Defense’s decision sends the wrong signal, not only to the Chinese Communist party, but also to our allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific,” the lawmakers wrote to Austin.

In the letter — which was cosigned by Bill Hagerty, a Tennessee senator and former US ambassador to Japan, and Michael McCaul, the top Republican on the House foreign affairs committee — the lawmakers asked the Pentagon to brief Congress on the development.

Critics have suggested the move to withdraw the F-15 Eagles without a long-term solution undermined the mantra from the Pentagon that it viewed China as “the pacing threat” to the US.

After publication of the previous FT story, the air force said it would keep a “steady-state presence” at Kadena as it looked at long-term solutions. It added that “the transition to more capable aircraft at Kadena exemplifies our continued commitment to enhancing our posture and building on the strong foundation of our alliance with Japan”.

The Republican lawmakers said they understood the need to modernise aircraft but said they were “concerned with reporting that indicates that there will be no permanent presence to replace the Okinawa F-15s”.

The debate over US force readiness at Kadena, one of the most important American bases in the Indo-Pacific, comes as concerns mount about China’s assertive military activity near and around Taiwan. Washington and Tokyo are in the middle of negotiations that could see the US approve the sale of Tomahawk cruise missiles to Japan, which would give the country a new capability to strike targets in eastern China.

The US is also preparing to deploy B-52 nuclear-capable bombers to Australia, as part of a long-term strategy to work with allies to deter China.

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