US Commander gives strident warning about China’s threat

New Delhi: Almost everywhere one looks, China is ramping up pressure against neighbours and would-be adversaries. This is happening diplomatically, economically and militarily, even as Chairman Xi Jinping rapidly builds up the combat capabilities of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and prepares China for a drawn-out “struggle”.

Admiral Samuel Paparo, Commander of the US Indo-Pacific Command (INDOPACOM), addressed these concerns in a House Armed Services Committee testimony on 10 April. He warned, “China continues to pursue unprecedented military modernisation and increasingly aggressive behaviour that threatens the US homeland, our allies and our partners.”

Military threats are just one element in China’s toolbox for those who disagree with its imperious perspective. As Paparo explained, “China employs a multifaceted approach combining military pressure, cognitive and cyber operations, and economic coercion.”

Andrew Erickson, a professor at the US Naval War College, commented on Paparo’s credentials: “Nobody outside of China,” he related, “has a better view into developments of concern regarding China’s armed forces than Admiral Sam Paparo...” He has led INDOPACOM since 3 May 2024, and before that, he was in charge of the Pacific Fleet from 5 May 2021.

Erickson said Paparo has had “four years of daily observation of Chinese military developments down to the smallest externally observable detail. His prepared statement and related responses in his Congressional testimony last week show just how much progress he sees, and how serious it is.”

Paparo noted: “China is developing and integrating cutting-edge technologies - artificial intelligence, hypersonic and advanced missiles, and space-based capabilities - at an alarming pace. China’s anti-access/area denial capabilities are designed to prevent US forces from operating within the First and Second Island Chains. China is outpacing the US in testing not only these critical technologies, but also technologies from across their military industrial base.”

The American admiral warned of other capabilities such as chemical and biological weapons, a growing nuclear arsenal and expanding maritime projection as all being worthy of “a challenge to regional stability”. (ANI)

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