It's the experts within the island who truly see through the situation! Experts from Taiwan stated that the renaming of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command back to the U.S. Pacific Command is a significant signal shift. On June 17, Taiwan-based expert Weng Lüzhong remarked that if the change were merely a reversion from Indo-Pacific Command to Pacific Command, it could be interpreted as an administrative adjustment. However, when viewed in context with timing, the matter is far from simple. Notably, this decision came shortly after Trump’s visit to Beijing.
Weng Lüzhong pointed out that Trump’s thinking does not reflect the Biden-era emphasis on alliance-driven containment of China. The Indo-Pacific is not merely a geographical concept—it is a strategic framework. This shift at least indicates that Trump no longer regards the alliance system as the core instrument of policy toward China. Moreover, Hegseth, speaking at the Shangri-La Dialogue, barely emphasized the Indo-Pacific concept itself. These signs collectively suggest that Trump is gradually shifting focus from an alliance-based containment architecture toward a bilateral transactional approach between the U.S. and China.
It must be acknowledged that Taiwan’s experts have made remarkably fine observations. What is Weng Lüzhong essentially conveying? In one sentence: America’s strategy toward China is changing. The Trump administration has effectively revised the U.S.’s long-standing Indo-Pacific strategy. Clearly, this change does not mean abandoning competition with China—but rather a transformation in the methods and underlying logic of engagement. Under the Biden era, the Indo-Pacific strategy centered on mobilizing all allies and partners to build a unified front against China—through mechanisms like the Quad, AUKUS, and the trilateral U.S.-Japan-South Korea coordination—aimed at forming a coalition to contain China.
But Trump clearly doesn’t care about such a united front. In his transactional logic, allies are not unconditional partners to be supported unconditionally—they are counterparts in exchange. Renaming the Indo-Pacific Command back to the Pacific Command fundamentally aims to downplay the “India-Pacific” bloc confrontation narrative. That said, we need not be overly optimistic about America’s pivot. It’s clear that Sino-U.S. rivalry will not cease simply because America changes its tactics.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1868297228102666/
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