China Arming

The Washington Post reports that Pentagon planners are growing increasingly wary of a Chinese military buildup that appears to be aimed at gaining the ability to project power.

China's military buildup is increasingly aimed at projecting power far beyond its shores into the western Pacific to be able to interdict U.S. aircraft carriers and other nations' military forces, according to a Pentagon report released yesterday that outlines continued concerns over China's rising strategic influence in Asia.

Chinese military planners are focusing to a greater degree than in the past on targeting ships and submarines at long ranges using anti-ship cruise missiles, partly in reaction to Taiwan Strait crises in 1995 and 1996 that saw the U.S. military intervene with carrier battle groups, the report said.

This seems to be directly aimed at Taiwan in the short run. In the long run, they may have bigger ambitions.

The 50-page report states that China's military buildup remains primarily focused on Taiwan, and notes that its current ability to sustain military power over long distances is limited. But the report also outlines Chinese military ambitions that go well beyond Taiwan, and reiterates the Pentagon's latest formulation on China's military threat, stating that "China has the greatest potential to compete militarily with the United States."

China's defense budget is expanding apace with the new investments, the report said. Beijing officially projects a growth in defense spending of 14.5 percent this year to about $35 billion. But the report, citing the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, puts the actual funding at twice or triple that amount — or as much as $105 billion — when all military-related spending is tallied.

Well, it's certainly getting interesting in the world right now. Somehow, I can't help but wondering if the plans to double China's fleet of civilian aircraft is not also part of what is going on here. Airlift capacity is also part of projecting power.