An anecdote has been introduced that the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff made two secret phone calls to reassure the Chinese side before and after last year's election, fearing that then-President Donald Trump, who was unstable, would cause a war with China.
The Washington Post reported on the 14th local time that this was included in the book 'Crisis', which will be published soon by associate editors Bob Woodward and reporter Robert Costa.
According to the book, Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called Li Zhucheng, Chairman of the Chinese Joint Chiefs of Staff, on October 30 last year.
It was just four days before the US presidential election on November 3rd.
The move came after reviewing information suggesting that China believes the United States is preparing to attack China.
At the time, tensions between the two countries were heightened by U.S. military exercises and Trump's belligerent remarks in the South China Sea.
"The US government is stable and I am confident that everything will be fine," Milley said on the phone. "We will not attack China."
He even said that he would notify in advance if the US attacks.
The second call was made on January 8, after the election.
It was a time when the United States was in great chaos due to the riots at the Capitol by Trump supporters who were dissatisfied with the election defeat.
Although Chairman Millie persuaded "we are 100% stable. Democracy can be sloppy sometimes", Chairman Lee was not easily pacified.
It also coincided with the same day that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat, called Milley to ask if there were precautions in place to prevent the unstable President Trump's orders of military hostilities or nuclear strikes.
Chairman Pelosi said that President Trump was insane at the time and the 1/6 Capitol riot was additional evidence of this, and Chairman Milley responded, "I agree with everything."
(Photo = Getty Images Korea)