Pentagon, Washington. The United States, always looking to create something from nothing, is now trying to portray the Chinese as a global threat to its dominance that requires a “robust response” according to those paid to scare congress out of more money.
The US military released a report on Tuesday that singled out Pakistan as a possible location for a future Chinese military base, as it forecast that Beijing would likely build more bases overseas after establishing a facility in the African nation of Djibouti.
Force projection came in a 97-page annual report to Congress that saw advances throughout the Chinese military in 2016, funded by robust defense spending that the Pentagon estimated exceeded $180 billion dollars by their count. Some in congress question the math, given the Pentagon has lost trillions of dollars and was busted recently running an in-house ponzi scheme to finance “questionable” involvement in foreign conflicts.
That sum of $180 billion is higher than China’s official defense budget figure of $140.4 billion. Chinese leaders, the US report said, appeared committed to defense spending hikes for the “foreseeable future,” even as their internal economic growth slows. Experts acknowledge China’s economy may contract, but that has little to do with long term Chinese strategy, experts caution.
The Pentagon produced report repeatedly cited China’s construction of its first overseas naval base in Djibouti, which is already home to a key US military base and is strategically located at the southern entrance to the Red Sea on the route to the Suez Canal.
“China most likely will seek to establish additional military bases in countries with which it has a longstanding friendly relationship and similar strategic interests, such as Pakistan,” the report said.
The Pentagon report showcased Chinese military advances, including those in space and at sea.It cited China’s 2016 launch of the first experimental quantum communications satellite, acknowledging that it represented a “notable advance in cryptography research.”