The ex-general urged Europe to try more to look after its own defences because the US needed to focus on the Pacific and ‘the Chinese threat’
The former commander of the US Army in Europe warned Wednesday that it is very likely the United States will be at war with China in 15 years.
Retired Lieutenant General Ben Hodges said that European allies will have to do more to ensure their own defences in face of a resurgent Russia because American will need to focus more attention on defending its interests in the Pacific.
“The United States needs a very strong European pillar. I think in 15 years – it’s not inevitable – but it is a very strong likelihood that we will be at war with China,” Hodges told a packed room at the Warsaw Security Forum, a two-day gathering of leaders and military and political experts from central Europe.
“The United States does not have the capacity to do everything it has to do in Europe and in the Pacific to deal with the Chinese threat,” Hodges said.
Hodges was US Army commander in Europe from 2014 until last year.
