Pentagon report detailed the enlargement of China’s arsenal of nuclear and traditional weapons.
China’s Ministry of Defence has criticised a report from the Pentagon in america detailing China’s rising navy power and nuclear arsenal within the newest barb between the 2 superpowers.
“We categorical our sturdy dissatisfaction and resolute opposition to this report,” Defence Ministry spokesperson Wu Qian mentioned in an announcement, describing the report as exaggerated hype a couple of “non-existent ‘Chinese language navy menace’.’’
Wu defended China’s rising navy power as essential for safeguarding its nationwide curiosity and as a deterrent to future conflict.
China is within the midst of two main campaigns to show its Folks’s Liberation Military (PLA) right into a “world-class navy” by 2027 and obtain “nationwide rejuvenation” by 2049.
A key component of “nationwide rejuvenation” consists of annexing Taiwan, the democratically-ruled island Beijing claims as a part of its territory. Whereas Taiwan’s navy is a fraction of the scale of the PLA, its longstanding safety treaty with Washington means it might have the would possibly of the US navy standing behind it in a future conflict.
In a show of its navy power, China fired missiles over Taiwan in July 2022 and carried out a number of days of naval workouts within the Taiwan Strait to protest towards a go to by then-US Home of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taipei. The PLA staged related workouts to mark an unofficial go to by Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen to the US.
Whereas the PLA can already declare the world’s largest navy, its navy would possibly continues to develop in different areas, in response to the Pentagon.
Its nuclear arsenal now consists of greater than 500 warheads with the potential to achieve greater than 1,000 by 2023, in response to the report.
The Pentagon mentioned China might also be contemplating how one can construct conventionally armed intercontinental-range missile techniques able to putting the US.
The US and its allies are additionally involved with China’s need to construct extra abroad naval bases – not not like the US. Beijing presently has a single base within the East African nation of Djibouti.
Pressure within the South China Sea, the place China is constructing islands and conducting aggressive patrols by its navy and militarised fishing fleets, has escalated this 12 months. This week, Manila blamed Beijing for a close to collision on Sunday round Second Thomas Shoal inside the Philippines Unique Financial Zone (EEZ).
The Pentagon report additionally got here after the US accused the PLA air power of extra aggressive behaviour, saying there had been “over 180 situations of PLA coercive and dangerous air intercepts towards US plane within the area”.
Wu mentioned US efforts to counter China’s navy enlargement had been hypocritical.
The US often levels freedom of navigation workouts in disputed locations just like the South China Sea and Taiwan Strait, whereas it has additionally exerted diplomatic strain to maintain China from opening extra bases.
“The US pretends to be confused, whereas doing issues that hurt China’s safety pursuits, however on the similar time shouting that it needs to handle the disaster and strengthen communication,” Wu mentioned.
China claims nearly the whole South China Sea below its controversial nine-dash line. The ocean can also be claimed partially by Brunei, Malaysia, the Philippines and Vietnam.
China additionally has maritime disputes with Japan over the Senkaku Islands, often known as Diaoyu in China.
