GLOBAL DEFENSE's video: Could the US and Its Allies Win a War Over Taiwan

Could the US and Its Allies Win a War Over Taiwan? The principal impediment to a successful rapid counterattack is geography. According to Global Firepower, South Korea operates over 2,000 tanks, Japan maintains a fleet of roughly 1,000 tanks, and Taiwan has 1,160 tanks. However, should China land large numbers of its 3,000 strong tank force and 1,970 self-propelled howitzers, could any kind of countervailing ground response force get there in time? A quick look suggests not. Southern Japan and South Korea are, depending on where ships depart, somewhere between 500 and 1,000 miles away from Taiwan. While this would possibly put Taiwan in range of tanker-refueled or sea-launched fighter jets, as well as some long-range missiles, a heavily armored force is extremely difficult to deploy and would need to be pre-positioned. This challenge may explain why there have been so many reports about Taiwan’s acquisition of Abrams battle tanks. Could there be enough mechanized armored resistance to slow down a Chinese incursion long enough to enable Japanese, South Korean, and forward-placed US forces to respond? Unless the United States and its allies took a measured and potentially highly controversial step to pre-position a large-scale armored force prior to any invasion, this does not appear likely.