Top US military official doubts China wants to invade Taiwan

The top US military official has expressed doubt that China wants to invade Taiwan, toning down rhetoric about the risk of war that has unsettled investors and other countries in the region.

“I do think that [Chinese president] Xi Jinping doesn’t actually want to take Taiwan by force. He will try to use other ways to do this,” General Charles Brown, chairman of the US joint chiefs of staff, told reporters in Tokyo.