China is steadily increasing military spending and is developing some very sophisticated capabilities, says the Pentagon. Seen here is the Luhu-class destroyer Qingdao during a goodwill visit to Hawaii in Sept. 2006. (US Navy file photo)
Report Documents Chinese Military Power, Calls for Transparency
(Source: US Department of Defense; issued May 25, 2007)
WASHINGTON --- China must continue to make strides in military transparency as it moves forward to becoming a global power, Defense Department officials said here today.
The officials briefed Pentagon reporters on background following publication of the 2007 Military Power of the People’s Republic of China report. The annual report to Congress covers key developments in China over the past year and changes in Chinese military strategy.
President Bush characterized U.S.-Chinese relations as good following his most recent visit with Chinese President Hu Jintao in April. He said the United States and China can work together to further security and economic prosperity in Asia and around the world.
The annual report to Congress reflects the U.S. view that China is an emerging regional military and economic power with global aspirations.
“It paints a picture of a country that … has steadily devoted increasing resources to their military that is developing some very sophisticated capabilities,” Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates said during a Pentagon news conference yesterday. Gates said the report is a realistic appraisal of Chinese security strategy.
Current relations with China have improved since the low point following the collision of a Chinese jet with a Navy EP-3 in 2001. Military-to-military ties are robust; there are troops visits and port calls. Military education exchange programs are being held at the senior and mid-level officer level. Joint military exercises are planned, and the two countries are working together on regional concerns – such as North Korean missile proliferation – and the danger bird flu presents. There are also discussions about disaster relief cooperation, officials said.
Gates wants China to have more transparency on military budgeting and strategy. The Chinese test of an anti-satellite capability in January caught the world by surprise and left many wondering what brought about that particular operation.
The official Chinese military budget is pegged at around $45 billion this year. But the real number could be as much as three times as high, officials said.
China’s defense budget is increasing by double-digit percentages per year, a rate that China has sustained for more than 15 years, fueled by the country’s remarkable economic growth, a defense official said. This year, the increase was 17.8 percent.
“We are convinced that China’s real defense spending is substantially higher – in the range of $85 billion to $125 billion in 2007,” the official continued.
This discrepancy between the official and actual figure is emblematic of U.S. concerns on transparency. Hiding these sums of money drives uncertainty over China’s intentions, the official said.
“It is not just a concern for the United States,” he said. “Many aspects of China’s military programs lead other nations to question China’s intentions and adjust their own behavior.”
Among the sums off the books are research and development expenditures, some military procurement, foreign purchases and dual-use technologies, officials said.
China is modernizing its forces. Officials said its newest missile -- the solid-fueled, transportable Df-31 -- could be used if needed. About 900 Chinese missiles are in place opposite Taiwan, compared with 710 to 790 missiles in late 2005.
China is developing home-grown advanced aviation and shipbuilding capabilities, and buying foreign – armaments, mostly from Russia. The report gives more information on Chinese moves toward building an aircraft carrier.
Overall, Gates said yesterday, the report is a balanced portrait of Chinese military capabilities.
“It paints a picture of a country that is devoting substantial resources to the military and developing, as I say, some very sophisticated capabilities,” he said. “We wish that there were greater transparency, that they would talk more about what their intentions are, what their strategies are. These are assessments that are in this publication. It would be nice to hear firsthand from the Chinese how they view some of these things.” (ends)
DoD Releases Annual China Military Power Report
(Source: US Department of Defense; issued May 25, 2007)
Pursuant to the National Defense Authorization Act of Fiscal Year 2000, the Department of Defense released to Congress today the “2007 Military Power of the People’s Republic of China” report.
- The entire PDF version (50 pages) of the report can be viewed at:
http://www.defenselink.mil/pubs/pdfs/07 ... -final.pdf
A transcript of the Pentagon’s background briefing with Defense Department Officials at the Pentagon can be viewed at:
http://www.defenselink.mil/transcripts/ ... iptid=3971
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Pentagon Says China Working to Project Power Farther
(Source: Voice of America news; issued May 25, 2007)
The U.S. Defense Department has issued its annual report on China's military capability, citing continuing efforts to project Chinese power beyond its immediate region and to develop high-technology systems that can challenge the best in the world. U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates says some of China's efforts cause him concern.
The report says "China is pursuing long-term, comprehensive transformation of its military forces" to enable it to project power and deny other countries the ability to threaten it.
The report says China's short-term focus is on preventing Taiwan from becoming independent, and preventing the United States from helping Taiwan in any cross-straits confrontation.
But it says China is also developing weapons systems designed to protect its access to resources, particularly oil, and to compete in long-range, modern warfare with increasingly sophisticated missiles, aircraft and ships, including possibly aircraft carriers. The report says the modernization is based partly on purchases, especially from Russia, but also on increasingly capable domestic military industries.
It says China is also developing the capability to compete in outer space and systems that could attack other nations' computer networks and communications capabilities. China was widely condemned for using an anti-satellite weapon to destroy one of its own satellites in January.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates would not say which of China' military moves cause him concern, but at a news conference on Thursday he indicated he is worried about China's continuing refusal to provide detailed information about its defense capabilities. The report says secrecy is part of China's basic defense strategy.
"We wish that there were greater transparency, that they would talk more about what their intentions are, what their strategies are," said Gates. "These are assessments that are in this publication. It would be nice to hear first hand from the Chinese how they view some of these things."
In the past, China has criticized these annual Pentagon reports, which are required by congress. But Secretary Gates says the report does not exaggerate or attempt to paint China's growing capabilities as a threat.
"I think it's a realistic appraisal of the Chinese view of their own security needs and what their strategies are," said the defense secretary. "It paints a picture of a country that has steadily devoted increasing resources to their military, that is developing some very sophisticated capabilities."
One area of ambiguity involves China's defense budget, which is officially $45 billion this year, a nearly 18 percent increase over last year. The Pentagon report says China's real defense spending is likely double or triple that figure.
The report also says China's longstanding pledge not to be the first to use nuclear weapons is becoming 'ambiguous,' as Chinese experts debate how to use their growing missile capabilities.
But the top U.S. military officer, General Peter Pace, who visited China in March, says China's current intentions are not the most important thing for him. He says the U.S. military needs to plan based on China's growing capabilities, which could be put to a variety of uses in the future.
"The most important thing from my perspective is for the United States military to stay well out ahead of any potential adversary, so that we are properly prepared should somebody's intent change to deal with that threat when it arises," he said.
The Pentagon report on China's military capability also notes that Chinese leaders have cooperated with the United States on a variety of issues, including North Korea's nuclear arsenal, and that China has a growing interest in global stability as it pursues economic development.
But the report also says China has demonstrated an increased willingness to work with rogue states and countries with poor human rights records, if those countries can help China reach its goals. It also says China has sold military technology to some countries in order to secure deals on fuel purchases.
The report calls China's efforts to modernize its forces and military doctrines "impressive," and it says there is an emphasis on what China calls "active defense," which the report's authors say means developing a preemptive strike capability, and using it if Chinese leaders feel it is necessary. The report says the concept also involves increasing China's ability to use military coercion, without actually using force.
At the same time, the report also expresses concern about potential miscalculation by Chinese leaders of their own military strength that could lead to unnecessary conflicts.
And the authors are also concerned that Chinese leaders could respond to internal dissent by launching a foreign military adventure in order to appeal to feelings nationalism and restore domestic stability. It says China's Communist Party leaders have "a deep rooted fear of losing political power" that shapes their strategic outlook and drives many of their decisions. (ends)
China: Perceived Arms Buildup Troubles Washington
(Source: Radio Free Europe; issued May 28, 2007)
A new annual report on China's arms development, issued by the U.S. Defense Department, says China is progressing with the development of long-range weapons that include guided missiles and new nuclear submarines.
The Pentagon's report suggests the nature of China's armed forces is changing rapidly away from local self-defense toward strategic capabilities.
Beijing rejects criticism that the modernization is aimed at increasing China's weight across the region, and says the impressive array of weaponry is purely for defensive purposes.
China's official press has called the Pentagon report an attempt to mislead international opinion with falsehoods that is damaging to Sino-U.S. military relations.
The report points to the development of new long-range missiles capable of carrying a nuclear warhead to the United States, plus the ability to deploy those missiles on mobile launchers.
It also sees Chinese work on nuclear submarines capable of firing atom-tipped missiles from underwater, as well as modern aircraft. The submarines would have the ability to sail close to targets anywhere in the world to deliver a surprise attack. Each one of the 8,000-ton Russian-designed Jin-class vessels would be able to carry up to 16 missiles. A fleet of five is planned, which would make China the world's third most powerful country in this category of weapons, behind the United States and Russia.
Development Questions
However, senior analyst Shannon Kile of the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute says the submarine program seems to be running into development difficulties.
"This is a project which had a long and troubled development history," Kile says. "It's unclear how close the Chinese are to making this force operational. There have been reports in the last few years that they are fairly close, but there is other evidence to suggest that they are still some years away [from deployment]."
Another senior analyst, Jean-Philippe Beja of the Center for International Studies and Research in Paris, says Taiwan still appears to be the focus of China's defense efforts. This preoccupation has shaped Chinese thinking on defense for decades, and has not required strategic force projection.
"The Chinese army is still in the process of modernizing," Beja says. "It is very backward in comparison to say, the U.S. armed forces. So what the Chinese are saying is that they are only trying to keep up with the latest developments, that they have not changed their strategy, and, that being the case, they have no capability to project strength very far away."
'Still Unclear'
Analyst Kile says it is too early to say whether the acquisition of the new arms is a modernization of China's military forces, or actually an expansion of those forces.
"What seems to be happening is that China is moving toward a more modern, survivable force -- that is to say, mobile land-based missiles and sea-launched missiles," Kile says. "It's completely unclear whether that means the force will be approximately the same size as at present, or will be considerably expanded over the next decade or so."
Not only is China aiming for big strides in military hardware, it has also moved forward rapidly on military-related space technology. Its spectacular interception of an orbiting satellite with a killer missile in January has worried the U.S. defense establishment.
The theme of the militarization of space has been taboo for decades. But China's unexpected experiment helps bring the subject to life again.
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