The Dragon's Reach: An Assessment of the People's Republic of China's Expeditionary Capabilities

Abstract

When reading security related journals and newspapers on China, the spectre of China's rising military comes to the forefront. While some of these articles can be written off as sensational, the potential for a Chinese military threat is not absurd. Currently, China's Anti-Access/Area Denial capabilities have many military planners scrambling to figure out ways counter them. However, a more significant threat to US national interests may come in the form of China's force projection capabilities. Although some analysts look to the increased Chinese military spending as the only indicator needed to judge China's capabilities, the true ability is more difficult to recognize. Using the concepts and evaluation criteria from Revolution of Military Affairs and Doctrine, Organization, Training, Materiel, Leadership and Education, and Personnel and Facilities this study identifies China's current force projection capabilities and the leading indicators that China needs to progress further.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
May 21, 2015
Accession Number
AD1001519

Entities

People

  • Wesley N. Knight

Organizations

  • United States Army Command and General Staff College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • C4I
  • Cyber
  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems
  • Space
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Power
  • Amphibious Operations
  • Combat Areas
  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Employment
  • Fighter Aircraft
  • Geography
  • Governments
  • Humanitarian Assistance
  • Military Operations
  • Military Organizations
  • Military Science
  • National Security
  • Naval Warfare
  • Transport Aircraft
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Logistics and Supply Chain Management.
  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Nuclear Non-Proliferation and International Security