U.S. Air Force General: Prepare for War with China by 2025

Jan. 29, 2023, 2022 (EIRNS)—A Jan. 27 memo from U.S. Air Force General Mike Minihan to Air Force commanders, predicting a war with China in 2025 has been obtained by NBC News. In the memo General Minihan ordered all air wing commanders in Air Mobility Command and other Air Force operational commanders to report to him by the end of February on their efforts to prepare for the China fight.

“I hope I am wrong.... My gut tells me we will fight in 2025. Xi secured his third term and set his war council in October 2022. Taiwan’s presidential elections are in 2024 and will offer Xi a reason. United States’ presidential elections are in 2024 and will offer Xi a distracted America. Xi’s team, reason, and opportunity are all aligned for 2025,” he wrote.

For another glimpse into the mindset of General Minihan, consider the following quotation from a keynote speech he gave in September at the Air, Space & Cyber Conference: “Lethality matters most. When you can kill your enemy, every part of your life is better. Your food tastes better. Your marriage is stronger.”

This is a faster timetable than the U.S. Army is on, if U.S. Army War College’s R. Evan Ellis’s 2027 estimate of conflict with China reflects the “thinking” (if we can call it that) in U.S. Southern Command and Army circles.

Asked for comment, Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee Michael McCaul (R-TX) said, on an appearance on Fox News Sunday, “I hope he’s wrong as well. I think he’s right, though, unfortunately.”