STRICKLAND QUESTIONS PENTAGON ON INDO-PACIFIC READINESS AND DETERRENCE

Washington D.C. - On Wednesday, April 22, 2026, Congresswoman Strickland questioned Admiral Samuel Paparo, General Xavier T. Brunson, and John Noh on the deterrence and warfighting readiness of the US and its allies in the Indo-Pacific. Strickland's remarks are transcribed below, and can be viewed here:

Chairman Mike Rogers: Ms. Strickland's recognized.

Congresswoman Marilyn Strickland: Thank you Chairman Rogers and Ranking Member Smith and thank you to our witnesses for being here today and your continued service.

I represent Joint Base Lewis-McChord, where forces like I CORP and the Multi-Domain Task Force are directly tied to the Indo-Pacific. The 2026 National Defense Strategy emphasizes deterrence by denial, but deterrence only works if it's credible in the near term, not just in future Force Design.

So, I want to focus my questions on whether we're positioned today to meet that standard. Admiral Paparo, I'm going to move over so I can make eye contact with you.

Representing JBLM where I CORP and the Multi-Domain Task Force are directly tied to the Indo-Pacific mission, at an unclassified level do you believe that U.S. Forces today are postured to maintain credible deterrence against China in the near term?

Admiral Samuel Paparo: I do. I do believe that we're postured correctly, but a very important element of that, and this is particular with regard to JBLM among other locations in the Western United States, is the mobility of forces to move and that mobility is underpinned by Air and Maritime capability that can rapidly move forces.

Strickland: Alright and maybe you have answered my follow up. The top one or two capability areas where additional progress is most needed now?

Paparo: Well, you know, I've talked about the changing character warfare and so munitions is the, you know, counter-C5ISR munitions is critically important.

But sustainment - and sustainment includes the ability to deploy, the ability to phase - that's a key area for improvement. And that is maritime vessels, including Army watercraft. That is air cargo aircraft. That's tanker aircraft, really across the whole spectrum.

Strickland: Thank you, Sir. Now moving on to General Brunson. Roughly 28,500 U.S. servicemembers are stationed in the Republic of Korea, with many serving 2- to 3-year tours in support of one of our most visible forward deterrence missions, including personnel who support operations tied to the DMZ. Given your operational experience and leadership on the Korean Peninsula, how do you assess the readiness of the Combined U.S.-ROK Force today to deter aggression from North Korea?

General Xavier T. Brunson: Congresswoman Strickland, thank you for the question. I would assess us, having just exercised this formation in February, as being prepared to deter.

Strickland: Thank you. Mr. Noh, deterrence is not only about military capability but also about the strength and alignment of our alliances, so I'd like to turn to you on this point.

In the 2026 National Defense Strategy, it calls for stronger contributions from allies and partners in the Indo-Pacific. To ensure our alliances remain strong and aligned, what clear expectations has the Department of Defense communicated to our allies and partners regarding the capabilities, investments, or contributions needed to strengthen collective deterrence, and how's the Department assessing whether those efforts are producing the intended deterrent effect?

John Noh: Congresswoman, thank you for your question. As I said in my opening statement, reestablishing deterrents in the Indo-Pacific is not a task that America can or ought to do on its own, so the role of our allies and partners is absolutely essential and critical. We have been building strong relationships that I can, I'd be happy to go into each and every one of them, but with allies and partners throughout the region. We have been asking wealthy and capable allies to step up, including with spending.

President Trump made a historic achievement last year at the NATO Hague summit in getting NATO countries to increase their core defense spending to 3.5 percent of their GDP. That is the global standard, as the NSS and the NDS both clearly lay out. We are asking our allies and partners to do that, to increase spending and to meet the global standard, and we're seeing progress.

Republic of Korea, a couple months ago, became the first non-NATO ally to commit to increasing spending to 3.5 percent of their GDP. And, as the Chairman mentioned, Taiwan is also taking significant steps to increase its spending, so we're seeing progress across the board, and we'll continue to push our allies and partners to do their part.

Strickland: Where's Japan, as far as their spending?

Noh: Japan is in the process of revising its 3 national security defense strategy documents. We're in constant communication with our Japanese counterparts, allies on this issue and we look forward to seeing progress on this front-

Rogers: Gentlelady from Washington's time has expired.