#XiJinping stresses building elite combat force through real combat training and digitalization https://t.co/8iXIuNWo7J pic.twitter.com/qoEXKMhi6y— China Xinhua News (@XHNews) January 4, 2018
Newsweek: If War With the U.S. Comes, What Are the Chinese Military's Strongest Weapons?
The U.S. has the most powerful military in the world, but China is not too far behind. If the two countries went to war, it would undoubtedly have a devastating impact on the world.
Both countries are nuclear powers and a global ranking of the world's militaries placed the U.S. at number one and China in third place, based on the annual report from Global Firepower Index.
There are currently no signs China and the U.S. will go to war in the near future, though it's a topic often discussed among academics and other members of the foreign policy community. Some military minds have also suggested the probability of such a conflict would be much higher if the U.S. takes military action against North Korea, which borders China and is one of Beijing's closest allies.
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Military And Intelligence News Briefs -- January 4, 2018
Xi Jinping tells army not to fear death in show of China's military might -- The Guardian
China building military base in Pakistan -- Washington Times
N. Korea Reopens Cross-border Communications With S. Korea -- AP
U.S. military warns against getting hopes up over North Korean overture -- Reuters
Lockheed to support Korea's Peace Krypton intelligence aircraft -- UPI
Who Wants to Operate Carrier-Based F-35Bs in Asia? -- Robert Farley, The Diplomat
Airborne 'Typhoon': Russia Develops Special Armored Vehicle for Paratroopers -- Sputnik
Where Russian Information Warfare Is Failing -- US Naval Institute
The Strategy Behind Russia’s Alleged INF Treaty Breach -- Adam Cabot, RCD
India to replace Russian air defense systems under $1.5B program -- Defense News
3 European producers bid for Poland sub deal -- Defense News
Trump might get pushback from Gemany on NATO spending after all -- Defense News
USS Bonhomme Richard to leave Japan, return to U.S. -- UPI
B-1 Crews Prep for Anti-Surface Warfare in Latest LRASM Tests -- DoD Buzz
Orbital ATK awarded $23M to support penetrating weapons -- UPI
Boeing to produce 6,000 Small Diameter Bombs -- UPI
US Starts Production of Upgraded Self-Propelled Howitzer -- Sputnik
US Navy Looks to Private Sector to Boost Sub, Aircraft Carrier Building Capacity -- Sputnik
Pentagon Contract Protests Aren't Frivolous, Rand Study Finds -- Bloomberg
Pentagon budget hangs in the balance as new talks begin -- Washington Examiner
White House names picks for top Air Force, Pentagon acquisition posts -- The Hill
House Dem calls for bill to restrict Trump's ability to launch preemptive nukes -- The Hill
Marine Corps Lab Imagines Weapons of the Future -- Signal
DoD Identifies Green Beret Killed in Violence-Plagued Afghan Province -- Military.com
How Peter Mims spent a week hiding in a warship’s engine room -- Navy Times
Fighter pilot who flew last combat mission in World War II dies at 93 -- Air Force Times
Military bands trumpet the might and status of their nation -- Financial Times
Analysts Outline Options to Cut Nuclear Forces -- Jon Harper, National Defense
5 Reasons The U.S. Army Must Modernize Faster To Avoid Catastrophe -- Loren Thompson, Forbes
Here’s how Trump can use his ‘big button’ -- Ken Chamberlain, Military Times
"The US has the most powerful military in the world...." While this could be true, it is far from certain. In fact, there appears to be much evidence to the contrary. As two examples, during the Georgian War Col. Ralph Peters had to admit that the Russians were able to mobilize and deploy their forces much faster than the United States could have in a similar situation and during the Syrian conflict Russian pilots were able to achieve a superior position relative to American pilots during most encounters. Furthermore Russian forces including their nuclear forces have undergone significant modernization in recent years while the US has not except for perhaps the boondoggle of the F-35 and a Littoral combat vessel that breaks down way to often.
ReplyDeleteThe same analysis could be made regarding the Chinese. There forces have undergone significant modernization in recent years as well. Additionally, the Chinese will be fighting much closer to home and both Russia and China have a deep base of reliable allies they can rely on. The US will not and does not have such reliable allies.
China's industrial might would prove to be very formidable as well. The US has massive national debt. This combined with the lack of a skilled workforce in manufacturing or the skilled workforce needed to build and maintain such facilities means the United States would essentially need to start from scratch in such a conflict and without the resources available to realistically expect to do so in the period of time necessary to make a difference likely gives China a decisive advantage over the US should a conventional hot war come to pass.
"the US has the most powerful military in the world..." While the statement might be true, to blithely make such statements and assume such things is unwarranted. In fact, the available evidence would appear to indicate otherwise. In other words, the sooner pundits and US officials stop spouting such ridiculous nonsense as this the sooner we can get down to the serious business of formulating policies that actually advance US national security and economic interests.
As I have stated numerous times, we cannot "know" the outcome of a war until it is actually fought. Reckless statements such as the one cited that don't have hard evidence expect for perhaps circumstantial evidence are unhelpful. It may well be correct to state that the US military is "very, very powerful" as POTUS has been known to do on occasion. Statements such as the "US has the most powerful military in the world..." are not warranted as such a statement has not only not been proven nor does it have substantial evidence to back it up. Such statements may even be the byproducts of a deranged individual or multiple individuals.
It has been said by the sages of ancient times that whomever the gods wish to destroy they first make mad. People who make such statements are indeed mad and their are unfortunately huge numbers of them in leadership and in the chattering class. For their sakes, I hope the sages of ancient times are inaccurate and for the sake of the American people I hope their destruction will not apply to us as well. As for the American people, most of know better than to spout off such nonsense as the "US has the most powerful military in the world" are ridiculous statements. I will reiterate, this has not been proven, can only be proven in actual combat, there is evidence available to support the notion that such a claim may be false, and any evidence to support such a claim is, at best, circumstantial. Had the pundit stated "the US military is very, very powerful" this statement is much more likely to be correct and could be stated by a reasonable and sensible person. The other one is, at best, someone who is not thinking things through properly and may even be the babblings of a lunatic mind at work.
Just pack your bags and move to Russia.
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