Image source,Reuters
The US Department of Defense report: China is the only competitor that has the ability to gather economic, diplomatic, military, and technological forces and continue to challenge a stable and open international system.
The latest 2021 Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China by the U.S. Department of Defense has substantially increased its estimates of China’s nuclear deterrence in the next ten years. , The trick to confuse the audiovisual”.
The U.S. Department of Defense has submitted a report on China’s military power to Congress every year since 2000. The biggest highlights this time include the U.S. pre-judgment and assessment of the situation in the Taiwan Strait, the Sino-Indian border conflict, China-Russia relations, and China’s number of nuclear warheads in the next ten years.
China’s “ambition”
The U.S. Department of Defense’s report on China’s military power aims to explain China’s national strategy to the U.S. Congress, covering China’s military modernization and reform progress, and analyzing China’s “regional and global ambitions”, including the PLA’s ability to develop cross-domain joint long-range precision strikes, space, Anti-space and cyber capabilities, as well as accelerating the expansion of nuclear armaments.
The report stated that “China has long regarded the United States as a competitor and summed it up as a strategic competition between powers and a conflict over a three-dimensional system.”
The report also agrees with the conclusions of the Interim National Security Strategic Guidance announced by President Biden in March 2021: The only competitor that challenges a stable and open international system.”
Image source,Xinhua
The report believes that China’s “ambitions and intentions are becoming increasingly clear.” Beijing seeks to reshape the international order to better conform to its own autocratic system and national interests, which is also an important part of the strategy of realizing the “great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation”.
The report specifically mentions that China passed the revision of the National Defense Law in December 2020, and believes that China’s move is “to increase the legitimacy of the use of force to defend overseas economic interests”.
Nuclear power increases
The U.S. Department of Defense’s 2021 China Military Power Report predicts that China will have 700 nuclear warheads by 2027; by 2030, China is likely to have at least 1,000 nuclear warheads.
The 2020 U.S. Military Power Report estimates that China has only slightly more than 200 nuclear warheads. By 2030, China’s total number of nuclear warheads will at least double.
From this point of view, the United States has substantially increased its assessment of the number of nuclear warheads in China in the next ten years.
In response, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin responded that the report issued by the US Department of Defense is the same as previous similar reports. “
Wang Wenbin also said that, in fact, the United States is the world‘s largest source of nuclear threat.
According to estimates by the Arms Control Association in 2021, the country with the most nuclear warheads in the world is still Russia, with a total of 6,255; followed by the United States, with a total of 5,550; and third, China, with a total of 350. The fourth is France, with a total of 290. The United Kingdom ranked fifth with a total of 225.
Taiwan Strait Relations
A report by the US Department of Defense believes that China’s diplomatic, political, and military pressure on Taiwan will increase in 2020. “For the whole year of 2020, the People’s Liberation Army has increased provocative and destabilizing operations inside and outside the Taiwan Strait, including flying into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone several times and conducting combat exercises such as seizing islands.”
As for the relationship between the United States and Taiwan, the report still states: the United States adheres to its one-China policy, which is guided by the Taiwan Relations Act (TRA), the three joint communiqu A peaceful settlement of cross-strait issues based on willingness and interest.”
However, this year’s report specifically pointed out: The United States is committed to deepening relations with Taiwan. Taiwan is a major democratic country and an important economic and security partner. “The United States will provide defense materials and services to enable Taiwan to maintain sufficient self-defense capabilities.” .
Crisis in the Taiwan Strait: How likely is it that China will rule Taiwan by military force?
China India, China Russia and others
The U.S. report on China’s military power is nearly 200 pages long and provides a very detailed explanation and evaluation of all aspects of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army. The key content also includes:
- Potential differences between China and Russia: China and Russia still maintain close military cooperation during the epidemic. Russian President Putin also expressed in a high profile in October 2021 that countries including China are welcome to actively use the northern sea route to increase the number of conflicts between the East and the West. However, the report believes that Russia passed regulations on the passage of the northern sea in 2019, requiring foreign warships to notify Moscow 45 days in advance when they intend to pass through the border, to equip a Russian pilot on board, and to reserve the right of Moscow to refuse passage. “If these regulations are followed, the ability of the People’s Liberation Army Navy to operate independently near the northern sea route in the future will be limited.” This will be a potential difference between China and Russia.
- The border conflict between China and India: China stated that it will prevent the border standoff from evolving into a broader military conflict; A residential village of 100 households. “Chinese officials, through official statements and official media, condemned India as an instrument of U.S. policy in Asia, but failed to prevent India from deepening its relations with the U.S. on the issue of border confrontation.”
- China is the world’s fifth largest supplier of weapons. Buyers include developing countries such as Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Pakistan. Its main export products include drones, submarines, and fighter jets. “Although some potential customers believe that the quality and reliability of weapons made in China are low, the sales of weapon systems in China come with discounts such as donations and flexible payments, which are attractive to buyers.”
- The Chinese Navy has about 355 combat ships and submarines, making it the largest navy in the world. The Chinese Army has 975,000 active servicemen, which is also the world’s first. The Chinese Air Force has 2,800 aircraft, which is the third largest in the world.