The Missiles of August

Historian Barbara Tuckman’s account of how this month in
1914 was marked by military mobilizations and maneuvers that
set the stage for World War I was called The Guns of August.
Welcome to the missiles of August.

In recent days, the Chinese Communist Party has accompanied
live-fire exercises effectively blockading Taiwan with ballistic
missiles sent over the island. These actions cap months of CCP
preparations reportedly aimed at transitioning China’s home
front “from normal to war” to achieve Taiwan’s “reunification-
by-force” with the mainland.

To date, the Biden administration has ignored repeated appeals
from those like our Committee on the Present Danger: China to
deter such Chinese aggression by dramatically increasing its
risks and costs. Unfortunately, our inaction before this ominous
August and in its course will not prevent a kinetic Sino-
American conflict, but decrease the odds of our ultimate victory
when it comes.

This is Frank Gaffney.