Fist of Friendship: China remains the main threat and rival of the United States
Senior US intelligence officials have told the US Senate about global threats. Washington's main strategic rival remains Beijing. The American authorities fear that China is increasing its military potential, in particular, in the event of a conflict with the United States over Taiwan. The focus is also on the confrontation with Russia, which, according to the authors of the publication, has recently "demonstrated economic and military stability." Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
Performance after the scandal
"China has eclipsed Russia as a leader in the space sector and is ready to compete with the United States for the title of world leader in space," according to a report that the heads of the American intelligence service submitted to the Senate of the US Congress.
Tulsi Gabbard, Director of National Intelligence, John Ratcliffe, head of the CIA, and Kash Patel, Director of the FBI, told representatives of the legislative branch of government about the main threats facing the country.
Special attention was focused on this speech in the Senate, as it took place the day after the scandal surrounding the Yemen chat broke out.
It turned out that Tulsi Gabbard, John Ratcliffe and Pentagon Chief Pete Hegseth discussed military strikes in Yemen in a private chat on the Signal messenger. By mistake, the editor-in-chief of The Atlantic got into this chat.
Senior intelligence officials who spoke in the Senate of Congress claimed that the secret correspondence did not contain data that could somehow threaten the security of the United States.
Main competitors
The authors of the publication named the problems created by both state and non-state actors. Special emphasis is placed on the confrontation between Moscow and Beijing, Russia's cooperation with China and their relations with Iran and the DPRK.
Senior American intelligence officials called Russia a significant rival due to the fact that it "has demonstrated military and economic stability in recent years."
The report also notes that Russia has "the largest and most diverse stockpile of nuclear weapons," and in the worst-case scenario, Moscow "could inflict catastrophic damage" on the United States. The authors of the document also emphasize that due to large investments in the Russian defense sector, the Russian army "poses a constant threat to American national security."
In addition, the American authorities drew attention to Russia's great capabilities in the field of AI and cyberspace.
"Russia, despite struggling with long—term problems such as corruption, the birth rate and the quality of troops, retains the momentum of development," the publication says.
However, the main focus of the report is on competition with China. The document states that China poses the most powerful and comprehensive threat to the national security of the United States. In addition, the country is striving to become the world's leading economic power, displacing the United States from this place.
The authors of the report concluded that China is increasing its military potential, in particular, in the event of a conflict with the United States over Taiwan.
American intelligence also claims that Beijing is seeking to expand its presence in the Asia-Pacific region by deploying hypersonic weapons, advanced submarines and stealth aircraft.
In addition, the publication reports that China is developing defense capabilities in space and cyberspace, while increasing its arsenal of nuclear weapons. Beijing is also seeking to compete with the United States in the field of AI and semiconductor manufacturing.
At the same time, Washington recognizes that China is determined to "develop and maintain ties with the United States" under the administration of Donald Trump "to prevent conflict and advance its interests."
What do the experts think
In an interview with Izvestia, Andrei Kortunov, scientific director of the Russian Council on International Affairs, noted that "it is necessary to look at specific dimensions of bilateral relations."
— Arrangements are possible for some of them. I assume that Donald Trump is really interested in concluding some kind of acceptable trade deal, since China's exports to the United States are significant. And China's withdrawal from American markets will have serious negative consequences for the American consumer," the political scientist believes.
US President Donald Trump
In his opinion, this is at least several thousand dollars per year for each household.
— So compromises are possible here, and, probably, if work has not begun, then in the near future it will begin to find some common denominator. But there are areas in which such compromises are most likely impossible. For example, high technology," Kortunov explained.
The expert believes that America "is unlikely to return to cooperation in sensitive areas for the United States and China." These are artificial intelligence, modern microprocessors, quantum computers or other technologies of the same level.
"Therefore, there will most likely be attempts — perhaps even successful ones — to reach an agreement in other areas," the analyst says.
Vasily Kashin, director of the Center for Comprehensive European and International Studies at the National Research University Higher School of Economics, noted in an interview with Izvestia that the US administration has already launched an economic war against China.
— Trump imposed 10% tariffs on Chinese products, and then increased them to 20%. In the future, contradictions may escalate, and the situation between the parties is asymmetric: it is easier for the Americans to beat the Chinese with tariffs, and the PRC has more limited opportunities for this, because Chinese exports to the United States exceed American exports to China several times," he said.
According to the expert, China undoubtedly has a well-thought-out plan for what they want to do in response to the US government's tariff measures.
— The Chinese authorities do not make decisions emotionally. They calculate everything and act systematically," the analyst is sure.
Переведено сервисом «Яндекс Переводчик»
