Pentagon releases National Defense Strategy prioritizing Western Hemisphere, omitting Taiwan

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth released the 2026 National Defense Strategy on January 23, making homeland defense and Western Hemisphere dominance the top US military priority for the first time since the Cold War. The unclassified document contained no mention of Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory, and made no commitment to defend the self-governing island. It described a posture of "realistic diplomacy" toward China emphasizing "deconfliction and de-escalation" rather than deterrence.