China is expanding its nuclear force
China is expanding its nuclear force, has increased military pressure against Taiwan and has strengthened its ties with Russia over the past year, according to a Pentagon report.
In fact now China is trying to improve its relations with India too.
One USA official speaking on condition of anonymity warned that Beijing is working toward developing a more diverse and technologically sophisticated nuclear force.
While the expected number of nuclear warheads has maintained consistent growth, China is broadening its targeting abilities.
Beijing is going to be able to go after more and different types of targets, do greater damage and have more options for multiple rounds of counterstrikes, the official said.
The U.S. is urging China to be more transparent about its nuclear program, while also warning that America will defend its allies and take appropriate steps in response.
According to the report, which provides the annual U.S. assessment of China’s military power and is required by Congress, China had more than 600 operational nuclear warheads as of May, and the U.S. expects it will have more than 1,000 by 2030….well USA too should be transparent and disclose its nuclear arsenal !!
The Chinese Embassy, in response, said China has always “firmly adhered to a nuclear strategy of self-defence,” follows the no-first-use nuclear policy and maintains its nuclear capabilities at the minimum level required for national security.
Liu Pengyu, the embassy spokesman, said such annual reports by the Pentagon are “filled with ‘Cold-War’ thinking and zero-sum game mentality, which China firmly opposes.
“The Biden administration has worked to maintain a balance with China, building up the U.S. military presence in the Asia-Pacific region to be ready to counter Beijing while also encouraging increased communications between the two countries at the diplomatic and military levels.
The Pentagon’s national defence strategy is built around China being the greatest security challenge for the U.S., and the threat from Beijing influences how the U.S. military is equipped and organized for the future.
Even for India the biggest security Challenge is a simultaneous two front war with China and Pakistan. Indian Forces are being organised to deal with this.
The report, however, also notes that the recent rash of corruption allegations within China’s powerful Central Military Commission, which oversees the People’s Liberation Army, may slowdown the pace of modernization.
The impact, said a senior defence official, is a bit of a mixed bag because while there has been progress in some programs, China has slid back in others.
The corruption within the PLA has resulted in at least 15 high-ranking officials being ousted in a major shakeup of China’s defence establishment.
In June, China announced that former Defense Minister Li Shangfu and his predecessor, Wei Fenghe, were expelled from the ruling Communist Party and accused of corruption. Last month, another senior official, Miao Hua, was suspended and put under investigation, according to China’s Defense Ministry.
The U.S. report points to a persistent increased military presence by China around Taiwan, an independent country that China claims as its own.
It said China’s navy has been in the region more and that there have been increased crossings into the island’s air defence identification zone and major military exercises in the area.
Just last week, a large deployment of Chinese navy and coast guard vessels in the waters around Taiwan triggered alarm as Taiwanese officials said it looked like China was simulating a blockade.
Officials have said there were as many as 90 ships involved in what Taiwan described as two walls designed to demonstrate that the waters belong to China.
The island democracy has been the chief source of tension between Washington and Beijing for decades and is widely seen as the most likely trigger for a potentially catastrophic U.S.-China war.
More broadly, the report concluded that the PLA continued its drive to develop greater military capabilities but “made uneven progress toward its 2027” milestone for modernization.
One area of expansion, the report said, is with unmanned aerial systems, which officials said are “quickly approaching U.S. standards.”
Regarding Russia, the report said China has supported Russia’s war against Ukraine and sold Russia dual-use items that Moscow’s military industry relies on. Well USA has acted similarly for Ukraine, so it’s tit fir tat!!!
