US Retired General Urges Joint Exercises and Regular High-Level Talks for Interoperability

Retired U.S. Navy Rear Adm. Mark Montgomery shared key insights today regarding cross-strait security and U.S.-Taiwan defense cooperation, pointing out that while current U.S. arms sales to Taiwan are an important element in maintaining its defense capabilities, the core of the matter actually lies in enhancing military interoperability between the United States and Taiwan. He emphasized that the militaries of both sides must conduct substantive joint military exercises, and that high-ranking generals and the defense ministers from both sides should achieve regular meetings. Furthermore, he mentioned that Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te should be able to visit the United States and meet with U.S. President Donald Trump, noting that without substantive cooperation and mutual understanding during peacetime, it will be difficult to achieve the goal of fighting shoulder-to-shoulder in wartime. These remarks profoundly highlight the challenges and breakthroughs facing current U.S.-Taiwan military cooperation in terms of institutionalization and combat readiness.

For a long time, U.S. military assistance and arms sales policies toward Taiwan have largely focused on the delivery of weapons and equipment, including fighter jets, missile systems, defense vehicles, and various communication equipment, aimed at enhancing Taiwan's asymmetric warfare capabilities. However, Montgomery's perspective reflects a deep-seated concern within the defense strategy community: merely possessing advanced weapons is insufficient to ensure successful defense. Modern warfare relies heavily on joint operational capabilities, battlefield situational awareness, encrypted communications, and the seamless integration of command and control systems. If the militaries of the two countries lack standardization and a high degree of alignment in operational doctrines, tactical terminology, communication frequency bands, and logistical support, even with the most sophisticated equipment, it would be difficult for Taiwan to coordinate an effective defense with the U.S. military when facing a formidable adversary. This is precisely the core significance of emphasizing military interoperability.

To overcome these potential tactical obstacles, Montgomery specifically emphasized the necessity of joint military exercises. In the past, military exchanges between the U.S. and Taiwan were largely conducted behind the scenes and in a low-profile manner, or consisted of small-scale observation, visits, and non-combat-level coordinated training, lacking large-scale, regular bilateral or multilateral joint exercises incorporating combat simulations. Elevating U.S.-Taiwan military cooperation to the level of joint drills would not only allow Taiwan's military to familiarize itself with U.S. operational thinking and modernized tactics, but would also enable U.S. frontline commanders to gain a firsthand understanding of Taiwan's geographical environment and defense deployments. This peacetime harmonization and trust-building is the only way to ensure that, in the event of a crisis, the forces of both sides can rapidly and accurately integrate resources, share intelligence, and jointly execute defense missions.

Beyond substantive drills for frontline troops, Montgomery also elevated the focus to the strategic and political levels, advocating for direct meetings between senior generals and the defense ministers of the U.S. and Taiwan. In the operation of defense diplomacy, regular high-level dialogue and strategic communication hold an irreplaceable position. Public or substantive meetings between defense ministers and high-ranking generals can ensure that both sides maintain a high degree of consistency regarding strategic intentions, defense priorities, and crisis management when facing regional security threats. Such institutionalized high-level exchanges not only reduce the risk of strategic miscalculation but also send a clear political signal to the outside world that the U.S.-Taiwan security partnership is close and solid, playing a substantial stabilizing role in deterring potential military adventurism.

Looking further, Montgomery bluntly stated that President Lai Ching-te should be able to visit the United States and meet with U.S. President Donald Trump. This suggestion touches upon the most central and sensitive taboos in U.S.-Taiwan diplomatic and political relations. For a long time, based on strategic tacit understanding between the U.S. and China and the U.S. One China policy, visits to the U.S. by Taiwan's top leader have been subject to strict restrictions and diplomatic wrestling. However, from the pure perspective of defense strategy and political alliance, the highest level of political mutual trust and direct communication are often the cornerstone for shaping a long-term security alliance. If the top leaders of the U.S. and Taiwan can achieve a face-to-face meeting, it would provide the strongest political mandate for comprehensive cooperation between the two sides in politics, diplomacy, and national defense, thoroughly shattering any strategic suspicions that might have arisen in the past due to ambiguous diplomatic positioning.

Reviewing Montgomery's advice, its core logic lies in upgrading the U.S.-Taiwan relationship from a traditional buyer-seller weapon dynamic into a true strategic partnership and operational alliance. From grassroots military interoperability and joint exercises to regular meetings of mid-to-senior level generals and defense ministers, and even down to interactions at the presidential level, every link is closely intertwined and indispensable. As he emphasized, without solid cooperation and the accumulation of trust during peacetime, it will be difficult to fulfill the commitment of fighting side-by-side in wartime. Amid the backdrop of increasingly severe security conditions in the Indo-Pacific region and the volatile situation in the Taiwan Strait, how to break through existing political frameworks and implement substantive military and strategic interoperability will be the most crucial issue facing U.S. and Taiwan national defense security in the future.