Army general refutes US attack: Trump would never attack this country – Topky.sk

“I know, I’m sure President Trump had no intention of attacking the Chinese.” Milley, chairman of the Corps of Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate Armed Forces Committee. “My job at the time was to ease the tension. My message was: to keep the peace and stability and to escalate the situation. We are not going to attack you.” said the general.

The phone calls of Milley and his Chinese partner, General Li Cuo-cheng, were first mentioned in their book Peril by reporters The Washington Post, Bob Woodward, and Robert Costa.

There were more phone calls

The first phone call took place last October 30, four days before the US presidential election, and the second on January 8, two days after Republican Trump supporters stormed the US Congress to prevent the confirmation of Democrat Joe Biden’s election victory. Some Republican lawmakers have accused Milley of exceeding his powers and called on him to resign.

In a statement before the Senate committee, Milley defended his proceedings and said that the phone calls had been coordinated with the then defense ministers. “The special need for the October and January phone calls stemmed from intelligence that led us to believe that the Chinese feared an attack by the United States.” Milley explained.

He did not try to influence the development of the situation

“Such communication between the military at the highest level is vital to the security of the United States in order to avoid conflict in the form of armed action, resolve the crisis, and prevent war between the powers possessing nuclear weapons.” the general pointed out.

“By no means have I attempted to change or influence developments, to assume powers, or to enter a chain of command.” added Milley. “I firmly believe in civilian control over the military, which is a fundamental principle of this republic, and I am committed to ensuring that the military does not interfere in domestic politics.” stressed.

Milley also mentioned his phone call to House Speaker Democrat Nancy Pelosi. According to Peril, she wanted to hear the assurance that there was no danger that Trump would unilaterally launch a nuclear attack. “I assured her that the nuclear attack was governed by very precise and well-thought-out steps. She had concerns and said various allusions characterizing the president. I explained to her that the president was the only official with the authority to launch a nuclear attack, but he did not fire it. Milley declared.

Source: SITA / AP Photo / Susan Walsh

According to the book, Pelosi said to Trump: “You know he’s crazy. He’s been crazy for a long time.” And Milley replied, “Madam President, I agree with you on everything.” In his statement to the committee, Milley said he had told Pelosi that he was “not qualified” to assess the president’s mental state.