According to experts China they will not be able to threaten US military domination in the world for a long time. On the other hand, they are increasing their ability to defend their own territory, project strength on a regional scale and to put pressure on their neighbors, some of whom are close allies of the US.
PRC leader Xi Jinping announces that by the middle of the 21st century the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (ALW) will become a world-class army, obedient to the party and able to “fight and win” in global armed conflicts. Xi declares peaceful intentions, but also stresses that China they will not give away “not a single piece of their territory,” which Beijing considers, for example, democratically ruled Taiwan.
During the pandemic, China intensified activities in the vicinity of those controlled by Japan Senkaku islands (Chinese Diaoyu). They also aim to take direct control of autonomous Hong Kong. Chinese warplanes approached Taiwan several times, forcing him to pick up their fighters. At least 20 Indian soldiers were killed in the first skirmish in 45 years with fatalities on the disputed border with China in the Himalayas.
At an enormous military parade last October, new unmanned submarines, combat and reconnaissance drones, modern tanks, fighters, bombers and ballistic missiles drove through Tiananmen Square in Beijing. Commentators emphasized that the new armament was developed and manufactured in China.
The growing missile power of the PRC is of particular concern in Washington. In Beijing, intercontinental ballistic missiles of the Dongfeng-41 type (“East Wind”) were shown, with range allowing attack to anywhere in the US. According to Chinese media, each of these rockets can carry up to 10 separately targeted warheads (MIRVs), potentially nuclear warheads.
The attention of observers is attracted by the medium-range ballistic missiles type DF-17, referred to as the first Chinese system of hypersonic missiles and one of the first such systems in the world. Missiles of this type fly at a speed many times greater than the speed of sound at a relatively low altitude, which makes it difficult or impossible for them to be shot down by missile defense systems.
There is simply nothing like this in any western army. China is now ahead of all Western countries in some areas of military technology – rated the director of the International Security Program at the University of Lowy in Sydney, Sam Roggeveen, quoted by the Wall Street Journal.
Chinese anti-ship ballistic missiles (ASBM) type DF-21D and newer DF-26 are of concern. These missiles were defined as the world’s first supersonic satellite-guided ballistic missiles that could strike a flying aircraft carrier from a long distance. Although their effectiveness has not yet been confirmed in practice, the press has called them “killers of aircraft carriers”. Ships of this type are recognized as a key tool for projecting US strength in the region.
High importance in campaign modernization of the Chinese armed forces has the development of navy. China currently has only two aircraft carriers, compared with 11 on the US Navy, and they are smaller than American. However, analysts believe that the PRC is already working on another, much larger ship of this type, which may be ready around 2022.
The Beijing parade also showed GJ-11 combat drones, a new version of the Lijian drones used by the Chinese Armed Forces (“Sharp Sword”), adapted to take off from aircraft carriers and attack distant targets. WZ-8 supersonic reconnaissance drones and unmanned reconnaissance submarines that could help China expand the sphere of military influence in the seas were also presented.
Despite advances in Chinese military technology, armia USA it is still unrivaled when it comes to the projection of power in the world, and Washington is still spending much more money on defense, “Konstantin Kakaes said in the” MIT Technology Review “.
The challenges facing the Chinese army include corruption and problems in recruiting and training high-class personnel. Part of this problem is the lack of experience – writes the American think tank Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). ALW has not participated in a major armed conflict since it invaded Vietnam 40 years ago.
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