Arms Racing With China: Battle for the Missile Race Narrative
Rick Fisher
August 12, 2019 Updated: August 12, 2019
An accelerating arms race will determine the contest for strategic primacy between the United States and China. Perceptions of American weakness could tempt China to risk war. At stake is whether future generations benefit from a prevailing liberal democratic order or become enveloped by a spreading illiberal anti-democratic order organized, led, and armed by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Not only is the United States now racing with China to build an adequate missile deterrent capability in Asia, it is also racing with Beijing over who will provide leadership and control the narrative regarding Asia’s strategic future.
After years of Russian cheating, and 30 years of watching China build up its theater missile forces, Washington on Aug. 2 departed from the 1987 Intermediate Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty with Russia that prevented both from deploying 500km to 5,500km range ground-based missiles. The next day in Australia, Secretary of Defense Mark Esper stated he would like the United States to deploy intermediate range missiles to Asia within “months†though new land-based missiles would take longer to deploy.
https://www.theepochtimes.com/arms-racing-with-china-battle-for-the-missile-race-narrative_3038620.html
