Washington [US], January 27: Approximately two months after the White House released its National Security Strategy (NSS), the Pentagon has just released its National Defense Strategy (NDS), which outlines the U.S. military strategy under President Donald Trump in a clearer manner.
Accordingly, the NDS emphasizes: "Maintaining a robust and modern nuclear deterrent capable of addressing strategic threats to the nation, strengthening and sustaining robust cyber defenses, and hunting down and neutralizing Islamist terrorists capable of and intent to attack the United States. At the same time, the military will aggressively and fearlessly defend U.S. interests throughout the Western Hemisphere. Ensuring U.S. military and commercial access to strategically important geographical areas, particularly the Panama Canal, the Gulf of Mexico, and Greenland."
Reaffirming "The Trump System of the Monroe Doctrine"
Similar to the NSS published in November 2025, the NDS emphasizes the "Trump System of the Monroe Doctrine." Accordingly, Washington considers the Western Hemisphere (i.e., the Americas) to be at the top of its priority list.
Regarding the Indo-Pacific region, the NDS emphasized: "Deterring China in the Indo-Pacific with strength, not confrontation. President Trump seeks a stable peace, fair trade, and respectful relations with China, and he has shown that he is willing to work directly with Chinese President Xi Jinping to achieve those goals." The NDS stated that the Pentagon is expanding the scope of communication between the military and the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China, with a focus on supporting strategic stability with Beijing, as well as conflict reduction and de-escalation in general.
However, the NDS asserts: "But the U.S. will also take a clear and realistic view of the speed, scale, and quality of China's historic military buildup. The U.S. goal in doing this is not to dominate China; nor to suppress China. The U.S. goal is simple: to prevent anyone, including China, from dominating the U.S. or its allies. This sets the necessary military conditions to achieve the NSS' stated goal of a balance of power in the Indo-Pacific, allowing us all to enjoy a good peace. To achieve that goal, as the director of the NSS, the U.S. military will build a robust anti-blockade defense system along the first island chain. The U.S. will also urge and facilitate key allies and partners in the region to do more for collective defense. To do so, Washington will strengthen deterrence by making all nations realize that their interests are served." The best way is through peace and restraint. This is how the U.S. military is establishing a position of military strength so that President Trump can negotiate terms that are beneficial to the country."
According to NDS, this is how the US military is turning President Trump's vision of peace through strength into reality in the crucial Indo-Pacific region.
Decoding the message for the Indo-Pacific
In an interview with Thanh Nien newspaper yesterday (January 26), Professor Stephen Robert Nagy (International Christian University - Japan, scholar at the Institute for International Studies in Japan) commented: "The new NDS of the Department of War is a more serious document than the National
Security Strategy (NSS) published at the end of November 2025. The NDS emphasizes that Washington will focus on the Western Hemisphere and the first island chain to prevent China from negatively impacting US interests. The NDS affirms that the US desires a relationship with China based on respect, competition, and allowing for peaceful coexistence. China is no longer the central security concern of the US, and Washington is committed to rebuilding investments to mitigate domestic threats. The NDS also criticizes previous US administrations for investing in liberal institutions and focusing too much on international commitments that did not directly benefit American workers."
Professor Nagy further analyzed: "For Asia, the NDS has elicited mixed reactions. Many welcomed comments on the first island chain and preventing China from becoming stronger than the US . But many others felt they still hadn't seen concrete signals of US commitment to the region. Accordingly, the signals from the Trump administration have generally been unclear."
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper