July 10, 2026: America has created a new military command, the 1 ^st MDTFMDC/Multi-Domain Task Force, the Multi-Domain Command. Consisting of a Stryker-wheeled armored brigade from the 7th Infantry Division, this army unit has HIMARS missile launchers, airborne and naval surface surveillance/attack drones, as well as EW (electronic warfare) equipment. The soldiers, along with their binoculars, radar, and electronic monitoring equipment, will identify targets. MDTFMDC communicates and coordinates with air, naval, and land units in the Western Pacific from Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Singapore, and Taiwan

The American army units are backed by air force and carrier aviation as well as warships and USMC amphibious assault ships. Three years ago, the Marines, after years of planning and preparation, activated its first of three Littoral Regiments in Hawaii. This one is called the 3rd Marine Littoral Regiment because it was built around the existing 3rd Marine Regiment in Hawaii. The Littoral Regiment is capable of operating throughout the Pacific and moving to a new area very quickly. The Littoral Regiment has three components: battalion-sized units called teams. The combat team consists of a Littoral Infantry battalion augmented by a missile battery firing guided rockets that can sink ships as well as destroy land targets

The U.S. Marine littoral combat team infantry element consists of small platoons that can operate independently or together with two or three other platoons. These platoons can be flown quickly to a combat zone or hot spot and collect information on the area, including selecting targets that can be hit by littoral regiment missiles or by missiles launched from warships or aircraft. A primary task of these platoon-size teams is to remain hidden. The team uses encrypted satellite communications. These small teams are mobile enough to quickly change location to prevent an enemy action.

The second littoral team is a battalion-sized anti-aircraft unit, while the third team handles logistics and support for the entire regiment, especially the infantry battalion teams. These teams combine skills the Marines have used in their Force Recon units and Scout Sniper teams, consisting of two snipers, to not only scout for a larger unit but also kill key enemy individuals they encounter.

And then there is the major threat in the West Pacific. China is developing an aircraft carrier fleet. By the end of 2025, China had three carriers, one of which entered service in late 2025. China currently has more ships than the American Navy, although the American Navy is much larger in tonnage due to its 11 nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and their escorts. The Americans also have more experience at sea and in combat, and have been the world's dominant naval force for nearly a century.

The Chinese navy has also been active off Japan and South Korea, just to remind these neighbors that the Chinese fleet was growing and keeping its ships at sea for longer periods. In the West Pacific, China has militarized more of the Spratly Islands: Fiery Cross Reef, Mischief Reef and Subi Reef. Mischief Reef is the largest at 663 hectares. Subi Reef is about 70 percent the size of Mischief, and Fiery Cross about half the size of Mischief Reef. All these reefs have air strips and docking facilities. Subi Reef recently received two radar domes like those on the other two reefs, which gives the Chinese near-total radar coverage of the seas and airspace around the Spratly Islands. All three reefs have had their surface area expanded and built up to include upgrades to ELINT/Electronic Intelligence systems, weapons emplacements, housing and related infrastructure. Empty weapons and vehicle emplacements on these islands enable the Chinese to quickly fly or ship in vehicle-mounted weapons and radar/fire control sets. The emplacements can also handle anti-ship and anti-aircraft missile launchers.

Last year saw the Chinese ramming Filipino coast guard ships as well as using water cannons against them. The ongoing territorial disputes with China in the South China Sea continue to escalate as the Chinese openly and aggressively drive Filipino navy ships from areas the Philippines has long controlled. In 2016, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Netherlands ruled that, under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, the Philippines had won its 2013 case that China's claims and activities in the South China Sea were unlawful. China had claimed 90 percent of the South China Sea. Over the last sixteen years, China has been increasingly aggressive while asserting those claims. While this recently escalated to using water cannons and ramming, past efforts are more tangible, like the artificial islands built throughout the South China Sea and garrisoned with heavily armed Chinese forces.