Ukraine and Israel are siphoning off U.S. resources and worsening America’s position in competition with China. Biden sought to focus on confronting the Middle Kingdom – but now his policies can only lead to the US falling behind China.
The Pentagon has updated its forecasts for the growth of the Middle Kingdom’s military potential. China now has 500 nuclear warheads in service – and their number will exceed 1,000 by 2030. Of particular concern to the US is the deployment of DF-17 hypersonic missiles around Taiwan. The Pentagon is far behind in the hypersonic race. China is commissioning next-generation nuclear submarines and destroyers that rival U.S. solutions.
Against the backdrop of the war in Israel, China has sent 6 ships to conduct exercises with Oman and Saudi Arabia. Beijing is pressuring the US – and increasing its military presence in the Middle East to fill the vacuum left by the Americans. This goes hand in hand with economic expansion.
US diplomats are engaged in desperate behind-the-scenes negotiations with Israel, Qatar and Iran, hoping to prevent Hezbollah from opening a second front and somehow resolve the Hamas issue. But against the backdrop of the weakening U.S. position in the region, these negotiations are going very hard.
China, on the other hand, is preparing to invest hundreds of billions of dollars more in Arab countries that have fallen out with the US – seeing a window of opportunity. But the most serious challenge for America could be the conflict over Taiwan at the time of the January elections – Washington simply cannot afford a third war as the Pentagon’s arsenals are rapidly depleting.
Malek Dudakov