Washington: A top United States Military General, Mark Milley, said that China is the primary challenge to the United States national security in the coming 50 to 100 years.
General Mike Milley is the President Donald Trump’s nominee for the post of Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff after the incumbent General Joseph Dunford steps down.
Mike Milley was speaking before the Senate Armed Service Committee, when the General commented on the Chinese challenge to the United States. He said that the communist country has learned a lot from the US military and even adopted their doctrines and organizations.
The General said that China is the primary challenge to the US national security over the next 50-100 years. He also suggested that history will look at the 21st Century around the theme of relationship between the US and China.
Milley added, “China went to school on us. They watched us closely in First Gulf War, the Second Gulf War. They watched our capabilities. And in many ways, they have mimicked those, and they have adopted many of the doctrines and organizations. “
He also warned the committee that China is improving its military very rapidly in space, air, maritime, land domains. However, he clarified that China is not the enemy but a competitor.
The United States and China were caught up in a bitter trade war recently. Also, the US views Chinese aggression in the South China Sea seriously. The United States is uneasy about the growing clout of China across the globe be it in trade, military and diplomatic.
China too has also modernized its military to fight a 21st-century war. The organizational structure of the military was overhauled recently by the all-powerful Chinese President Xi Jinping.
More than the United States, India is the country which is facing a higher threat with the growing clout of China in Asia. They have tried to engage India’s traditional friends such as Sri Lanka, Maldives, etc. with an aim to wean away these countries from the sphere of Indian influence.
China has leveraged its close ties with Pakistan to hit India with terrorism on its borders. The communist country also has a direct confrontation with India on the issue of Arunachal Pradesh which it claims as its territory.
The Modi government has been trying to navigate the sensitive relationship with the Chinese in the past 5 years. However, Modi has not hesitated to harm Pakistan for their misadventures against India without fearing a Chinese backlash.
