Economics remains the guiding linchpin in measuring the broad status of China’s military modernization efforts, but this effort should not be performed in isolation. If US combat commanders want to measure the strength and reach of China’s military power, they will need to assess three interlocking components of Beijing’s strategic mindset.
First, proper characterization of Beijing’s current military strategy reveals a China interested in regional power projection. Its force-modernization efforts are guiding transformation efforts into a professionalized force with technologically advanced air and naval capabilities for sustained engagements. Initially aiming to project and protect regional national interests, Beijing invariably seeks to shape the decisions of competitors, parlaying with regional actors while shaping regional security architecture favorable to itself. This objective is achieved by fielding C4ISR (command, control, communication, computing, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) capabilities.
Second, as of this writing, China does not possess sufficient national power to act as a regional hegemon, for a national military strategy of regional hegemony would possess sustained influence to exclude regional competitors. In the case of China, it would mean adopting sufficient power to exclude US influence from East Asia. To prevail against other hegemons, China needs to succeed in long-term conflict with the US and its regional alliance members. This means major, sustained conflict with Australia, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines and the US simultaneously.
Third, current Chinese military power configuration possesses global aspects whose trends can strengthen sustained engagement abroad, if Beijing’s political base can sustain heavy political strain. This means Beijing must perform extensive military engagements abroad, exercises and arms sales beyond its immediate region, sustained forward presence in hostile territory, and unrestrained global reach – all while performing a constant pace of global operations.
For Beijing to compete with the US abroad, it must shape its modernization efforts within a political framework determining whether its military predominately concerns itself with conducting regional operations or the pursuit of global aims.
Currently, China does not have sufficient economic or political power to sustain global engagements. For this to change favorably to China, its political leadership would need to examine the supremacy of ethnic Han leadership as the final composition of an efficacious mythology eradicating a century of humiliation while overcoming managed liberalization schemes in its current capital accounts.
It means an examination of the political composition of Chinese power.
China’s economic influence is NOT predicated on any sort of HEGOMONY. In this respect, it is a total contrast to USA, where influence FOLLOWS military-political hegemony. USA’s concern about the economic "prosperity" of a country under its hegemonic concern was NOT altruistic – it aimed ONLY at the aggrandisement of US dominance and the maximization of profits to US based cartels. China targets a simultaneous growth of the other countries economy as a condition of its own growth. Ethnicity does not factor in at all.
This entire article was babble combined with the authors opinions. I’m honestly surprised that it was published.
China has enough economic and population resources to become east Asia’s hegemon and true global power, but the problems is those two aspects are not enough, China needs political will and great power grand strategy to succeed, I have little doubt China will master technolgical advancement and economic growth to underpin and modernize its military, but China lacks what I call "great power strategic culture" which means you should to behave like one, great powers do alliances, they establish military base abroad, they have global ambtions, they compete for influence in far away regions, the reason they are doing so is because their economic and strategic interests are global, they must protect those interests in far away regions. China’s limited nuclear capability policy, its relatively low military expenditure, its rejection of military alliances and its mercantalist behavior does not qualify Beijing as true great global power.
Chinese population is shrinking fast, no chance to overcome the US, 100+ million males, falling fertility etc, they will be halved by 2050
This writer can`t see the forest for the trees.When comparing the US and China it is necessary to look at where China was 20 years ago, and where the US was 20 years ago. 20 years ago the US had unchallengable military and economic power. China had nothing to fight the Americans with and an economy 1/ 15th the size of the US. Now they have pushed the US Navy virtually out of range of the Chinese mainland 1.5 the size of the US economy. Looking at the last twenty years, and if you project 20 years into the future, If you look to the long game ( not an American strong suit) you can see China overtaking the US, militarily and economically in a couple of decades. China is a growing and dynamic economic and military power. The US on the other hand, has built enemies all over the globe, is a shrinking economic power and it`s military is weakened by continuous war , corruption and outdated equipment and strategies. ( If the US can`t win wars with Iraq and Afghanistan how in the world are they going to win against China and Russia, and or just Russia and or China?) Just because you keep thumping your chest and bellowing to the world that you are the strongest, most powerful, richest and smartest nation on earth certainly does not make it so. The US is like a heavy weight boxer in serious decline from old age and having taken too many punches to the head. Just take a close look at the US and you can see who is going to win this war to control the world. ( I don`t think the Chinese have any intention of controling the world just trading with it.) The writing is on the wall.
As an act of desperation the United States may provoke WWIII and go nuclear. The most likely source of ignition would be Taiwan.
USA becomes the only country to use atomic bombs, the only country to test the radiation of the hydrogen bomb on real people (Marshal Island), the only country that depopulate a whole island, forcing the people of Diego Garcia to vacate their land and homes to Mauritius without compensation, the only country that practices MIGHT is RIGHT, and kidnap legally elected leaders of other countries to be tried in the USA.
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It started 11 wars, started Arab Spring, caused the breakout of the Soviet Union, and other European states, and killed millions, displaced millions, make millions disabled, diseased and tortured countless.
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It is good that the USA continues to think it is very powerful and that the weak China does not possess sufficient national power to act as a regional hegemon. Also to let the USA assume that in any conflict USA can count on Australia, Japan, South Korea and the Philippines even as it knows its support in S Korea and the Philippines is weakened.
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China if ever a confliect arises, would just want to show the Americans Area Access/Area Denial in the South China Sea first island chain, and to do enough damage for US to know that their arrogance had failed them in the Korean War 1950, and the Vietnam War and will fail it also in the South China Sea.
as a ringleaders of the regimes, china can’t be superpower.