The U.S. defense budget will top $606 billion this year. Time will tell the Gifts we bring to ourselves and our children in the next few years - the major forces at play accelerating and foretelling our destination are in the headlines - science suppression causing the Trouble With Physics and creating the stagnant energy science is an extremely unwise and lethal choice as it also deprives us of the evolutionary wisdom and understanding that accompanies new energy revelations - all requirements for survival Evolution Freedom Survival The Promise of New Energy
US fears grow over China military
BBC: The US has expressed concern over China's growing military might.
A Pentagon report given to Congress says Beijing is spending far more on its military budget than admitted and calls for greater transparency.
The report highlights China's greater ability to mount pre-emptive strikes, citing new submarines, unmanned combat aircraft and sophisticated missiles.
China said in March it was increasing its military spending by 17.8% in 2007 but it still lags far behind the US.
The BBC's James Coomarasamy in Washington says the Pentagon paints a picture of a country whose growing economic and political power is being mirrored in "a comprehensive military transformation".
The annual report says Beijing is moving towards a more pre-emptive defence strategy with the focus on its border areas.
It would be nice to hear first-hand from the Chinese... we wish there were greater transparency, that they would talk more about what their intentions are Robert Gates US Defence Secretary
It suggests that the possibility of US intervention in any crisis in the Taiwan Strait is an important factor in China's military planning.
The report also describes a successful anti-satellite weapon test conducted by the Chinese in January as posing a threat to "all space-faring nations".
As in previous reports, there was strong complaint about a lack of transparency in both China's military spending and its military aims.
"It would be nice to hear first-hand from the Chinese... we wish there were greater transparency, that they would talk more about what their intentions are," US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday, prior to the report's release.
Its publication comes at the end of a week when a high level Chinese delegation has been in Washington discussing areas of economic tension - and is a further sign that the levels of trust between Washington and Beijing are currently not very high, our correspondent says.
'Nuclear forces'
The Pentagon report highlights concerns about China's preparations to deploy a mobile, land-based ballistic missile, with a range that reportedly covers the entire United States.
The development of a new fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, equipped with ballistic missiles with a range of more than 8,000km (5,000 miles), is also cited.
Experts say the Jin-class vessels are capable of carrying 12 missiles, with each one armed with three nuclear warheads.
One of these Chinese-built submarines is currently undergoing tests, and five more are planned, says Andrew Yang of the Chinese Council for Advanced Policy Studies in Taiwan.
Previously China had just one nuclear-powered submarine, which was so unreliable it rarely travelled far from its base, Mr Yang said.
He added: "The Americans are concerned about whether a gradual build-up of nuclear forces implies China will change its nuclear policy of no first use."
Natural consequence
Over the last 15 years, China has been engaged in a massive military build-up and modernisation programme.
It plans to allocate 350.9bn yuan ($45.9bn) to its military this year, although some analysts say Beijing spends double or treble this amount.
However, the BBC's defence correspondent Rob Watson says US opinion is divided over the strategic challenge posed by China.
Some see it as an emerging threat that must be countered at every turn - others take a more benign view, seeing China's increased military expenditure as a natural consequence of its growing economic power, our correspondent says.
Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/6691691.stmPublished: 2007/05/25 20:17:12 GMT
CNN
Military pumps up China's influence, Pentagon says
Story Highlights
• Beijing modernizing force, strategy, according to report to Congress• Development "will increase Beijing's options for military coercion," report says• Army gaining capability to fight high-tech adversaries• Successful missile tests of particular concern, Pentagon says
(CNN) -- China's modernizing military will make it a more muscular player in world events, a U.S. Defense Department report says.
China's developing capabilities "will increase Beijing's options for military coercion to press diplomatic advantage, advance interests or resolve disputes," the Pentagon says in its annual report to Congress on China.
The Pentagon says that Beijing remains preoccupied with military contingencies in the Taiwan Strait -- but adds that the Chinese military is also improving its ability to win possible conflicts over resources or territory. (Watch how China has become a modern, high-tech adversary )
To that end, the report says, the Chinese army is transforming itself from a force designed to fight wars of attrition on its own territory to one capable of winning short but intense campaigns against high-tech adversaries.
It says China's military expansion is in part designed to protect its access to raw materials around the world, especially coal and oil supplies. At present, the report says, "China can neither protect its foreign energy supplies, nor the routes on which they travel."
The report notes key developments such as China's testing of an antisatellite missile in January and the greater accuracy and range of its missile forces, including intercontinental ballistic missiles.
"New air- and ground-launched cruise missiles that could perform nuclear missions will similarly improve the survivability and flexibility of China's nuclear forces," it adds.
It also says that China continues to modernize its Navy with better air-defense systems and new submarines, while its offensive air power has been improved with the acquisition of Su-30 strike aircraft and F-10 fighters.
Military spending continues to grow more quickly than the expansion of the economy, with Beijing announcing an increase of nearly 18 percent in its defense budget in March.
Looking at the situation with Taiwan, the report says the balance of forces continues to shift in the mainland's favor, with military exercises and deployments contributing to an atmosphere of intimidation. The report adds that tension could also increase as Taiwan prepares for its next presidential election, planned for March 2008.
Despite the pace of modernization, the report says, the People's Liberation Army remains untested in modern warfare and most of China's leaders lack military experience.
That gives rise to a greater potential for miscalculations, according to the report, which "would be equally catastrophic whether based on advice from operationally
Pentagon Worries About China Weapon Test
Guardian - Friday May 25, 2007 5:31 PM , By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - China is improving its capacity for launching surprise military attacks along its border areas, reflecting its view that preemption is necessary when confronting a more powerful enemy, the Pentagon said Friday.
In its annual report to Congress on Chinese military developments, the Pentagon also said China's recent success at destroying a satellite in low-Earth orbit is a threat to the interests of all space-faring nations and posed dangers to human space flight.
In a section titled ``Is China Developing a Preemptive Strategy?'' the report cited as evidence the fact that the People's Liberation Army has been acquiring long-endurance submarines, unmanned combat aircraft, additional precision-guided air-to-ground missiles, and long-distance military communications systems.
Attempting to capture the essence of China's strategy, the report quoted former supreme leader Deng Xiaoping's guidance, known as the 24-character maxim, which says in part, ``hide our capacities and bide our time; be good at maintaining a low profile.''
``It suggests both a short-term desire to downplay China's capabilities and avoid confrontation, and a long-term strategy to build up China's power to maximize options for the future,'' the Pentagon report said.
Peter Rodman, who until early this year was the Pentagon's top Asia policy official, said in an interview Friday that there is reason for concern that China's long-range aim is to ``revise the existing balance of power in the world, but they are patient and they are just doing this quietly; they think long term.''
Rodman added that because U.S. officials are carefully and closely monitoring China's growing military strength and sophistication, ``We can handle this, we're no slouches ourselves at maintaining our capability.'' Rodman is now a foreign policy fellow at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.
The report said China's near-term focus is on preparing for a military crisis in the Taiwan Strait, where it continues to emplace more short-range ballistic missiles.
``However, analysis of China's military acquisitions and strategic thinking suggests Beijing is also generating capabilities for other regional contingencies, such as conflict over resources or territory,'' the report said.
Chinese military training that focuses on no-notice, long-range air strikes ``could also indicate planning for preemptive military options in advance of regional crises,'' the report said.
The Pentagon highlighted its concern about Beijing's anti-satellite test in which a missile was used to destroy one of China's old weather satellites in low-Earth polar orbit; the January test was China's first.
``The test put at risk the assets of all space-faring nations and posed dangers to human space flight due to the creation of an unprecedented amount of debris,'' the report said, adding that this is an important expansion of China's pursuit of weaponry and strategies that are designed to deny U.S. forces access to areas in Asia.
Rodman said the Bush administration knew in advance that China planned to conduct the January test but it chose not to address it with the Chinese because U.S. officials were convinced Beijing would go ahead with it regardless.
The anti-satellite capability demonstrated in the test is only one element of a multidimensional program to develop a capability to deny other nations access to outer space, the Pentagon asserted.
China has purchased UHF-band satellite communications jammers and is developing other technologies and concepts for weapons with anti-satellite missions, the report said. It also is improving its ability to identify and track satellites, ``a prerequisite for effective, precise physical attacks,'' the report added.
The report was presented to Congress on Friday, just days before Defense Secretary Robert Gates travels to Singapore to address an international conference on Asian security issues, where China is likely to be a key topic.
In previewing the report's release, Gates told reporters on Thursday that some of China's new capabilities are of concern to the United States but he did not provide details.
``We wish that there were greater transparency, that they would talk more about what their intentions are, what their strategies are,'' Gates said. ``It would be nice to hear firsthand from the Chinese how they view some of these things.''
China expanding military ability well beyond borders, study says
Peter Spiegel, Los Angeles Times
Saturday, May 26, 2007
(05-26) 04:00 PDT Washington -- China's military buildup remains focused on preventing Taiwan's independence but is expanding to include other regional military goals, including securing the flow of oil from overseas, according to an annual Pentagon study.
The 42-page report, required by Congress, found that Beijing's investment in offensive military capabilities along the Taiwan Strait has continued unabated. It has deployed more than 100 additional short-range missiles in the region over the past year, bringing its total aimed at Taiwan to about 900. China also has 400,000 of its 1.4 million soldiers based in the three military regions opposite Taiwan, the study said.
But Beijing's investment in military modernization -- which might have reached as much as $125 billion last year, according to the Defense Intelligence Agency, or triple the official $45 billion declared by Beijing -- has produced military systems that enable China to project force well beyond its shores.
Of particular concern, the report said, is the increasing ability of the People's Liberation Army to strike at an adversary's forces in the Pacific Ocean, a clear reference to U.S. bases in Asia and American naval forces that constantly patrol the region and that would rush to Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion.
"The PLA appears engaged in a sustained effort to develop the capability to interdict, at long ranges, aircraft carrier and expeditionary strike groups that might deploy into the western Pacific," the report stated.
In addition, the report said China is attempting to move its long-range nuclear forces out of vulnerable silos, basing them on more elusive submarines and ground-based mobile launchers.
The report reiterates the Pentagon's concern over China's successful anti-satellite missile test in January, saying it appeared to be part of a broad strategy designed to disable enemy satellites.
The Pentagon repeated its concern that China refuses to explain why it is investing so heavily in new weapons systems, a "lack of transparency" that is forcing the U.S. military to improve air and naval forces as a "hedge" against unknown Chinese designs.
One defense official who worked on the report said China has become more open about its intentions. Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld accused China in 2005 of being increasingly provocative by hiding the reasons behind its buildup.
Last year, Beijing published a national security white paper generally describing its defense policies and the purpose of its military modernization, the official said on condition of anonymity.
Rumsfeld leveled his charge at an annual gathering of Asian defense ministers in Singapore, a conference that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will attend next week. Gates is expected to exhibit less brinksmanship.
The new report takes particular notice of China's increased need for oil from the Middle East and Africa and notes that the demands of growing energy consumption are beginning to shape the country's military and strategic thinking.
The higher estimates of Chinese spending would make its annual defense spending the world's second highest, but still only a fraction of the U.S. program. Including $170 billion in war spending, the U.S. defense budget will top $606 billion this year.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/05/26/MNGGNQ20LQ1.DTL
This article appeared on page A - 10 of the San Francisco Chronicle
BBC: The US has expressed concern over China's growing military might.A Pentagon report given to Congress says Beijing is spending far more on its military budget than admitted and calls for greater transparency.
The report highlights China's greater ability to mount pre-emptive strikes, citing new submarines, unmanned combat aircraft and sophisticated missiles.
China said in March it was increasing its military spending by 17.8% in 2007 but it still lags far behind the US.
The BBC's James Coomarasamy in Washington says the Pentagon paints a picture of a country whose growing economic and political power is being mirrored in "a comprehensive military transformation".
The annual report says Beijing is moving towards a more pre-emptive defence strategy with the focus on its border areas.
It would be nice to hear first-hand from the Chinese... we wish there were greater transparency, that they would talk more about what their intentions are Robert Gates US Defence Secretary
It suggests that the possibility of US intervention in any crisis in the Taiwan Strait is an important factor in China's military planning.
The report also describes a successful anti-satellite weapon test conducted by the Chinese in January as posing a threat to "all space-faring nations".
As in previous reports, there was strong complaint about a lack of transparency in both China's military spending and its military aims.
"It would be nice to hear first-hand from the Chinese... we wish there were greater transparency, that they would talk more about what their intentions are," US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said on Thursday, prior to the report's release.
Its publication comes at the end of a week when a high level Chinese delegation has been in Washington discussing areas of economic tension - and is a further sign that the levels of trust between Washington and Beijing are currently not very high, our correspondent says.
'Nuclear forces'
The Pentagon report highlights concerns about China's preparations to deploy a mobile, land-based ballistic missile, with a range that reportedly covers the entire United States.
The development of a new fleet of nuclear-powered submarines, equipped with ballistic missiles with a range of more than 8,000km (5,000 miles), is also cited.
Experts say the Jin-class vessels are capable of carrying 12 missiles, with each one armed with three nuclear warheads.
One of these Chinese-built submarines is currently undergoing tests, and five more are planned, says Andrew Yang of the Chinese Council for Advanced Policy Studies in Taiwan.
Previously China had just one nuclear-powered submarine, which was so unreliable it rarely travelled far from its base, Mr Yang said.
He added: "The Americans are concerned about whether a gradual build-up of nuclear forces implies China will change its nuclear policy of no first use."
Natural consequence
Over the last 15 years, China has been engaged in a massive military build-up and modernisation programme.
It plans to allocate 350.9bn yuan ($45.9bn) to its military this year, although some analysts say Beijing spends double or treble this amount.
However, the BBC's defence correspondent Rob Watson says US opinion is divided over the strategic challenge posed by China.
Some see it as an emerging threat that must be countered at every turn - others take a more benign view, seeing China's increased military expenditure as a natural consequence of its growing economic power, our correspondent says.
Story from BBC NEWS:http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/2/hi/asia-pacific/6691691.stmPublished: 2007/05/25 20:17:12 GMT
CNN
Military pumps up China's influence, Pentagon says
Story Highlights
• Beijing modernizing force, strategy, according to report to Congress• Development "will increase Beijing's options for military coercion," report says• Army gaining capability to fight high-tech adversaries• Successful missile tests of particular concern, Pentagon says
(CNN) -- China's modernizing military will make it a more muscular player in world events, a U.S. Defense Department report says.
China's developing capabilities "will increase Beijing's options for military coercion to press diplomatic advantage, advance interests or resolve disputes," the Pentagon says in its annual report to Congress on China.
The Pentagon says that Beijing remains preoccupied with military contingencies in the Taiwan Strait -- but adds that the Chinese military is also improving its ability to win possible conflicts over resources or territory. (Watch how China has become a modern, high-tech adversary )
To that end, the report says, the Chinese army is transforming itself from a force designed to fight wars of attrition on its own territory to one capable of winning short but intense campaigns against high-tech adversaries.
It says China's military expansion is in part designed to protect its access to raw materials around the world, especially coal and oil supplies. At present, the report says, "China can neither protect its foreign energy supplies, nor the routes on which they travel."
The report notes key developments such as China's testing of an antisatellite missile in January and the greater accuracy and range of its missile forces, including intercontinental ballistic missiles.
"New air- and ground-launched cruise missiles that could perform nuclear missions will similarly improve the survivability and flexibility of China's nuclear forces," it adds.
It also says that China continues to modernize its Navy with better air-defense systems and new submarines, while its offensive air power has been improved with the acquisition of Su-30 strike aircraft and F-10 fighters.
Military spending continues to grow more quickly than the expansion of the economy, with Beijing announcing an increase of nearly 18 percent in its defense budget in March.
Looking at the situation with Taiwan, the report says the balance of forces continues to shift in the mainland's favor, with military exercises and deployments contributing to an atmosphere of intimidation. The report adds that tension could also increase as Taiwan prepares for its next presidential election, planned for March 2008.
Despite the pace of modernization, the report says, the People's Liberation Army remains untested in modern warfare and most of China's leaders lack military experience.
That gives rise to a greater potential for miscalculations, according to the report, which "would be equally catastrophic whether based on advice from operationally
Pentagon Worries About China Weapon Test
Guardian - Friday May 25, 2007 5:31 PM , By ROBERT BURNS, AP Military Writer
WASHINGTON (AP) - China is improving its capacity for launching surprise military attacks along its border areas, reflecting its view that preemption is necessary when confronting a more powerful enemy, the Pentagon said Friday.
In its annual report to Congress on Chinese military developments, the Pentagon also said China's recent success at destroying a satellite in low-Earth orbit is a threat to the interests of all space-faring nations and posed dangers to human space flight.
In a section titled ``Is China Developing a Preemptive Strategy?'' the report cited as evidence the fact that the People's Liberation Army has been acquiring long-endurance submarines, unmanned combat aircraft, additional precision-guided air-to-ground missiles, and long-distance military communications systems.
Attempting to capture the essence of China's strategy, the report quoted former supreme leader Deng Xiaoping's guidance, known as the 24-character maxim, which says in part, ``hide our capacities and bide our time; be good at maintaining a low profile.''
``It suggests both a short-term desire to downplay China's capabilities and avoid confrontation, and a long-term strategy to build up China's power to maximize options for the future,'' the Pentagon report said.
Peter Rodman, who until early this year was the Pentagon's top Asia policy official, said in an interview Friday that there is reason for concern that China's long-range aim is to ``revise the existing balance of power in the world, but they are patient and they are just doing this quietly; they think long term.''
Rodman added that because U.S. officials are carefully and closely monitoring China's growing military strength and sophistication, ``We can handle this, we're no slouches ourselves at maintaining our capability.'' Rodman is now a foreign policy fellow at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.
The report said China's near-term focus is on preparing for a military crisis in the Taiwan Strait, where it continues to emplace more short-range ballistic missiles.
``However, analysis of China's military acquisitions and strategic thinking suggests Beijing is also generating capabilities for other regional contingencies, such as conflict over resources or territory,'' the report said.
Chinese military training that focuses on no-notice, long-range air strikes ``could also indicate planning for preemptive military options in advance of regional crises,'' the report said.
The Pentagon highlighted its concern about Beijing's anti-satellite test in which a missile was used to destroy one of China's old weather satellites in low-Earth polar orbit; the January test was China's first.
``The test put at risk the assets of all space-faring nations and posed dangers to human space flight due to the creation of an unprecedented amount of debris,'' the report said, adding that this is an important expansion of China's pursuit of weaponry and strategies that are designed to deny U.S. forces access to areas in Asia.
Rodman said the Bush administration knew in advance that China planned to conduct the January test but it chose not to address it with the Chinese because U.S. officials were convinced Beijing would go ahead with it regardless.
The anti-satellite capability demonstrated in the test is only one element of a multidimensional program to develop a capability to deny other nations access to outer space, the Pentagon asserted.
China has purchased UHF-band satellite communications jammers and is developing other technologies and concepts for weapons with anti-satellite missions, the report said. It also is improving its ability to identify and track satellites, ``a prerequisite for effective, precise physical attacks,'' the report added.
The report was presented to Congress on Friday, just days before Defense Secretary Robert Gates travels to Singapore to address an international conference on Asian security issues, where China is likely to be a key topic.
In previewing the report's release, Gates told reporters on Thursday that some of China's new capabilities are of concern to the United States but he did not provide details.
``We wish that there were greater transparency, that they would talk more about what their intentions are, what their strategies are,'' Gates said. ``It would be nice to hear firsthand from the Chinese how they view some of these things.''
China expanding military ability well beyond borders, study says
Peter Spiegel, Los Angeles Times
Saturday, May 26, 2007
(05-26) 04:00 PDT Washington -- China's military buildup remains focused on preventing Taiwan's independence but is expanding to include other regional military goals, including securing the flow of oil from overseas, according to an annual Pentagon study.
The 42-page report, required by Congress, found that Beijing's investment in offensive military capabilities along the Taiwan Strait has continued unabated. It has deployed more than 100 additional short-range missiles in the region over the past year, bringing its total aimed at Taiwan to about 900. China also has 400,000 of its 1.4 million soldiers based in the three military regions opposite Taiwan, the study said.
But Beijing's investment in military modernization -- which might have reached as much as $125 billion last year, according to the Defense Intelligence Agency, or triple the official $45 billion declared by Beijing -- has produced military systems that enable China to project force well beyond its shores.
Of particular concern, the report said, is the increasing ability of the People's Liberation Army to strike at an adversary's forces in the Pacific Ocean, a clear reference to U.S. bases in Asia and American naval forces that constantly patrol the region and that would rush to Taiwan in the event of a Chinese invasion.
"The PLA appears engaged in a sustained effort to develop the capability to interdict, at long ranges, aircraft carrier and expeditionary strike groups that might deploy into the western Pacific," the report stated.
In addition, the report said China is attempting to move its long-range nuclear forces out of vulnerable silos, basing them on more elusive submarines and ground-based mobile launchers.
The report reiterates the Pentagon's concern over China's successful anti-satellite missile test in January, saying it appeared to be part of a broad strategy designed to disable enemy satellites.
The Pentagon repeated its concern that China refuses to explain why it is investing so heavily in new weapons systems, a "lack of transparency" that is forcing the U.S. military to improve air and naval forces as a "hedge" against unknown Chinese designs.
One defense official who worked on the report said China has become more open about its intentions. Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld accused China in 2005 of being increasingly provocative by hiding the reasons behind its buildup.
Last year, Beijing published a national security white paper generally describing its defense policies and the purpose of its military modernization, the official said on condition of anonymity.
Rumsfeld leveled his charge at an annual gathering of Asian defense ministers in Singapore, a conference that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will attend next week. Gates is expected to exhibit less brinksmanship.
The new report takes particular notice of China's increased need for oil from the Middle East and Africa and notes that the demands of growing energy consumption are beginning to shape the country's military and strategic thinking.
The higher estimates of Chinese spending would make its annual defense spending the world's second highest, but still only a fraction of the U.S. program. Including $170 billion in war spending, the U.S. defense budget will top $606 billion this year.
http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/05/26/MNGGNQ20LQ1.DTL
This article appeared on page A - 10 of the San Francisco Chronicle
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