A senior US Air Force official observed that China is not a future threat to the United States and its allies, but it is a threat today as Chinese Communist Party has been investing heavily in the operational concepts and capabilities of its defence forces.
Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall, while addressing a gathering of Air and Space Forces Association convention in Washington recently, said he has been closely watching the evolution of China's military for the past 15 years.
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He said the aforementioned concepts and capabilities are specially designed to defeat the ability of the US and its allies to project power in the Western Pacific region, and includes weapons targeting the US land and sea assets like air bases and aircraft carriers.
"China is not a future threat; China is a threat today," Kendall said, according to a Department of defence release.
He observed that China continues to expand its nuclear forces and its ability to operate in cyberspace.
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He cited the example of China coming up with bigger and highly sophisticated military exercises that are suited for an invasion and blockade of Taiwan and said, "I am not saying war in the Pacific is imminent or inevitable. It is not. But I am saying that the likelihood is increasing and will continue to do so."
"To prevent conflict, we must be ready; to prevail in conflict, we must be ready," he said, suggesting that the US must be ready to contain and prevent any potential future threats.
