China’s military might has overtaken the United States, Pentagon reveals

A new report has shown that the US slept while China grew. Not only is this a huge blow to America’s pride, it could ultimately be a very dangerous mistake.

A new Pentagon assessment of Chinese military might claims that it has surpassed the United States in number of warships, land missiles and air defense systems.

The news is a blow to America’s national pride.

“Frankly, the United States slept while China grew,” US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said yesterday.

The annual report Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China (PRC) acknowledges that the Pentagon was wrong when, 20 years ago, it dismissed the potential threat posed by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). Instead, reports claim, it is now well and truly on its way to becoming what President Xi Jinping demands to be “a world-class army.”

“(Beijing) has mustered the resources, technology and political will over the past two decades to strengthen and modernize the PLA in almost every respect,” the report concludes, adding that “China is already ahead of the United States in certain areas “. .

This includes its shipbuilding economy, as well as the number of ballistic, cruise, and anti-aircraft missile systems.

In particular, the 173-page report notes that the Chinese navy is now the largest in the world with a total of 350 vessels. The United States Navy reports 293 ships in active service.

Pompeo says China continues to be outmatched by the combined strength of the West and its allies.

“It is critical that we have friends and allies in this battle,” he told Fox News.

“We have worked for two years to build that. We have made real progress. You have seen them recognize the threat. They slept on this threat the same way the United States did for two decades.”

POWER PROJECTION

The Pentagon believes that China is on track to expand its fleet to 360 vessels by the end of 2020, most of which are “modern multi-function platforms” with high-end capabilities.

While it launches more destroyers and frigates each year than the rest of the world combined, it still lags behind in the key areas of submarines and aircraft carriers.

Beijing currently has two mid-size aircraft carriers in operation. Two others are believed to be under construction.

The United States has a fleet of 10 nuclear-powered aircraft carriers that are much larger and more capable than the current Chinese force. But the ships Beijing has under construction are believed to be larger, capable of sustaining operations longer and using catapults to launch heavier aircraft.

The report notes that this will allow Beijing to project a powerful strike force far beyond Chinese national waters and the “first island chain” (Taiwan, Philippines, Malaysia).

His military will be able to project power over what Beijing calls its “second island chain” of influence: from Japan in the north, via the island of Guam in the US Pacific, via the Mariana Islands to Papua New Guinea.

“The PLAN’s ability to conduct missions beyond the First Island Chain is modest but grows as it gains more experience operating in distant waters and acquires larger and more advanced platforms,” ​​the report says. “More shocking than the staggering amounts of new PLA military equipment are the recent radical efforts by CCP leaders that include the complete restructuring of the PLA into a force better suited for joint operations” and to “expand the military footprint of the PLA. People’s Republic of China abroad “.

DENIAL OF AREA

The Pentagon assessment says China has more than 1,250 ground-launched ballistic missiles and cruise missiles with ranges between 500 km and 5500 km. Until recently, the United States had been prevented from producing similar weapons under the terms of its 1987 Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty with Russia.

President Donald Trump’s administration withdrew from the agreement last year. Since then, it has tested a ballistic missile and a cruise missile that fall into this category.

Such missiles, which can carry nuclear or conventional warheads, are central to Chinese and Russian area denial tactics. This involves stacking a location, like Kaliningrad on the Baltic coast or one of Beijing’s artificial island fortresses in the South China Sea, with dozens of launchers.

Such a concentration of firepower makes it extremely difficult for naval forces to approach without risking serious losses.

Beijing and Moscow have a similar approach to air defense, which the Pentagon report calls “one of the world’s largest forces for advanced long-range ground-to-air systems.”

The Russian-made S-400 is a long-range, high-speed weapon that is touted as “next-generation” and capable of attacking American stealth aircraft.

But the report warns that China may soon venture beyond these defensive bubbles.

“In the short term, the PLAN will have the ability to perform long-range precision strikes against land targets of its submarine and surface combatants using land attack cruise missiles, notably enhancing the PRC’s global power projection capabilities. “.