U.S. military personnel in
Japan
back Bush in his stance on Taiwan
By Greg Tyler, Sasebo bureau chief
SASEBO
NAVAL BASE, Japan — Military personnel in Japan stand behind their president’s
support for Taiwan.
President
George W. Bush asserted Wednesday that the United States would use military force to
assist the tiny island nation of 21.5 million people against Chinese aggression. His
comments took foreign policy analysts by surprise and angered officials in China.
The
U.S.-China relationship is already strained by the recent EP-3E Navy surveillance plane
incident. A Chinese jet fighter and the U.S. surveillance plane collided in what the
United States says was international airspace.
"Being
in the military — possibly being in harm’s way — is just part of the
contract you signed," said 20-year-old Petty Officer 3rd Class Robert Hayes, who
works in the engineering department of the USS Fort McHenry, based at Sasebo Naval Base in
southwestern Japan.
"You
signed on to do it. It might not be something you really want to do, but you must serve
your country. Taiwan is so small that I could see this happening, and I support what the
president said, and I support Taiwan."
Iwakuni
Marine Corps Air Station Gunnery Sgt. Don C. Dilbeck, 41, echoed much the same sentiment,
but with a distinctly Marine flavor.
"We do
what we’re told without questioning what the president says," he said Thursday.
"We’re Marines, and that’s what we do. Being ready to go 24 hours a day
comes with the title Marine."
Army Spec.
Louis Lynn of the 35th Supply and Support Battalion at Camp Zama admitted he is not
well-versed in the history of Taiwan-China tensions, but said, "As far as our getting
involved in that, that’s what we do. We tend to support oppressed people."
Lynn
compared the situation to that in the Balkans, saying U.S. intervention could prevent a
wider conflict.
"It’s
not going to be a minor thing," if the United States aids Taiwan, he said. But,
"if you can alleviate something before it gets out of hand, why not do that?" A
diplomatic solution would be preferable, he added.
Maj. Tom
McCabe, 54, with Marine Air Logistics Squadron 12 stationed at Iwakuni, in southwestern
Japan, said, "We’re here to provide stability in this region, no matter what it
takes."
In the
event Japan-based servicemembers are called into action at some point, Petty Officer 2nd
Class Gary Bass, 31, a religious programs specialist in Sasebo’s Chaplain’s
Office, explained that chaplains and their staff members are often deployed on military
missions.
"As
far as us possibly being deployed in that area, well yes, it’s our duty. If I’m
called, I’m called. It doesn’t mean I have to like it, but if I have to go, I
have to go," Bass said.
"But
in light of what President Bush has said, as strong as our ties to Taiwan are, I
understand where he is coming from. I think we should defend Taiwan. Of course.
Definitely."
At Yokota
Air Base near Tokyo, an Air Force retiree expressed confidence in Bush’s position.
Retiree Tom
Torres adamantly believes the U.S. military should defend Taiwan in the event of a Chinese
invasion. Taiwan is only about 140 miles off China’s coast.
"Taiwan
is a democratic, capitalist country, and the U.S. has such a long relationship with
Taiwan," he said. Bush should make support for Taiwan "more than clear, totally
clear."
China and
Taiwan split amid civil war in 1949, and China won’t rule out using force to assert
control over the island it claims is a breakaway province.
Through
recent decades, the goal of U.S. policy has been to keep Taiwan from provoking China by
declaring independence, and to keep China worried about the possibility of U.S. forces
defending the island from Chinese attack.
Stripes
writers Fred Knapp and Jennifer Svan contributed to this report.
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