Pentagon’s $842 Billion Budget Focuses on China Threat

President Joe Biden’s request for $886.3 billion in Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24), defense budget includes $842 billion to the Pentagon. This is a $26 billion or 3.2 percent increase over the military spending plan. “growing multi-domain threat posed by the People’s Republic of China (PRC)” Again, the nation’s most pressing issues were again listed “pacing challenge.”

Both Kathleen Hicks, Deputy Defense Secretary, and Lloyd J. Austin III, Secretary of Defense used the same phrase to describe the proposed military budget’s focus on China. “the most strategy aligned military budget” In the nation’s past.

“Nowhere is that alignment more pronounced than in the seriousness with which this budget treats strategic competition with the People’s Republic of China,” Hicks spoke to reporters in Washington, March 13. “Our greatest measure of success—and the one we use around here most often—is to make sure the [Chinese] leadership wakes up every day, considers the risks of aggression and concludes, ‘Today is not the day.'”

“As our national defense strategy makes clear, the People’s Republic of China (PRC) is our pacing challenge,” Austin stated this in a statement dated March 13. “As the PRC races to modernize its military, this budget will sharpen our edge by making critical investments across all timeframes, theaters, and domains. Among numerous important actions that bolster our combat credibility in the short term, this budget makes the department’s largest-ever investments in readiness and procurement–and our largest investment in research and development.”

The Pentagon plans to spend money over the next years, reflecting China’s massive military modernization in the past decade.

A South China Sea Bloodbath

FY24’s military budget request includes $170million for new weapons, ships and other equipment. “the largest procurement budget in the nation’s history” $61 billion “develop, modernize and procure lethal air power” China’s investment in air and naval defense in the Pentagon’s Indo-Pacific theatre of operations is directly under threat

The spending plan proposes $48.1 billion to purchase three new submarines as well as four destroyers/frigates that will be used to stop a Chinese Navy which is numerically the largest in the world.

The Pentagon is seeking $13.9 billion for 80 amphibious combat vehicles for the Marine Corps, and 91 armored multipurpose vehicles for the Army and—in direct response to China investments—$29.8 billion for missile “defeat and defense” Programmes totaling $11 billion were used to develop long-range subsonic and hypersonic missiles.

The FY 2024 budget request also includes $9.1B for the Pacific Deterrence Initiative. This is a 40% increase on this year’s budget. “resilient and distributed air basing, new missile warning and tracking architecture, construction to enable enhanced posture … and multinational information sharing, training, and experimentation.”

Austin stated that the increase in PDI spending is crucial for developing countries. “advanced capabilities, new operational concepts, and more resilient force posture in the Indo-Pacific region. It also enables groundbreaking posture initiatives in Guam, Mariana Islands, the Philippines, Japan, and Australia.”

China is the No. 1 Threat to US 1 Threat

Pentagon planners identify China top of the list while in the United States. “pacing challenge,” Beijing: The People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) planners see the United States as their greatest threat.

China’s next annual military budget was announced at the National People’s Congress (NPC), which concluded March 13th in Beijing. It increases defense spending by 7.2 to 1.55 trillion Yuan or $224 billion.

This increase is the second consecutive year in which the Chinese have increased their military spending by at most 7 percent. This also marks the first-ever time that the defense budget of China has been increased in a decade.

China’s military budget demands that its armed forces be there “intensify military training and preparedness across the board, develop new military strategic guidance, devote greater energy to training under combat conditions and make well-coordinated efforts to strengthen military work in all directions and domains.”

In addition to pumping out ships—especially submarines—to constitute the world’s largest Navy, it is building a sophisticated network of stealth fighter jets, long-distance missiles, and “air access denial” Protections to “push [potential enemy combatants] away from the fight,” During a March 14, National Security Alliance, Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA), China Mission Group Chief Doug Wade “Coffee & Conversation” seminar.

The Chinese could unleash a lot of air, missile and naval firepower into the South China Sea, and other parts of Southeast Asia. “worry me a lot,” Wade said.

Chinese officials say they should increase military spending as the United States, Australia, and other countries in the area, have done so.

Wang Chao, spokesperson of the NPC, said that China’s defense budget has been reduced during a Beijing press conference on March 11. “relatively moderate” With a “reasonable growth rate” This has remained steady in terms of a percentage nation’s Gross domestic Product (GDP), since 2015.

“It remains basically stable, lower than the world average,” Wang said.

No Taiwan Invasion to Be Expected

China’s $224Billion military budget is barely a quarter of that of the Pentagon. $886.3 billion Wade stated that while defense spending is a priority, thwarting China’s ambitions will require economic integration and complementary military investment from allied countries. “in strategic competition with China.”

Wade claimed that China is heavily investing into military and “influence” Applications for Artificial Intelligence, Quantum Computing, Hypersonic Missiles, and Operation to Fight Wars in Space and Deny Access to Space to its Enemies. This concern the DIA.

“Space is a real issue,” He said that China is restructuring its economy. “robust space program, second only to the United States,” All “a full spectrum of activities,” Includes “counter space activities.

“China views space as a potential weakness for the United States.” Wade said, and it has set out to “You can dominate this domain” while striving to dominate “All other war-fighting domains.”

He said “The total” of China’s military modernization has been “It’s just the right kind of amazing” to observe over the last decade, with the effort spanning “There are many elements.”

Defense analysts are carefully watching how Chinese military leaders “How they work together, their assets.” to synchronize and multiply impact, Wade said.

“It is the sum of all the pieces that makes it so impressive.” of China’s military growth, he said.

The DIA does not see China preparing to invade Taiwan anytime soon.

“Look at the ways China could use military pressure on Taiwan [it] With a range of activities, including cyber, it is likely that they will start below the threshold for a conflict. [naval] Blockade, growing violations of Taiwan’s Air Defense Zone and territorial encroachments from naval forces” Wade said, adding U.S. intelligence agencies are “well-positioned” to monitor, anticipate, and respond to China military activities

“China’s President Xi has made clear that China doesn’t want to resort force, but hasn’t ruled out the possibility.” in bringing Taiwan into the PRC, he said. “China does not want to fight Taiwan.”

Nevertheless, the DIA projects “A period of increasing confrontation” between the United States and China militaries and anticipates antagonistic “Cyber-behavior” and “South China Sea assertiveness” by China to continue.

Wade said the agency sees China’s economic relationships as its primary source of strength and something the United States must counter with enhanced economic-military-intelligence “Partnerships” with nations that oppose “Totalitarianism” and seek “Rules-based ordering” to world commerce.

A “China rising” is exerting itself in areas of contention with the United States and other nations, he said, but both nations are also intimately engaged in a vast range of daily interactions and programs that provide opportunity “To engage China constructively”

“There are many ways that the U.S. could collaborate with China on matters of common concern” in places such as Africa, and on issues such as climate change and international trade, where the two nations already share “Producing partnerships” with each other.

“We may not always see eye-to–eye.” Wade said, but the United States and China can “These partnerships should be used to maximize their potential in common areas.” rather than allow the conversation to “We see each other only as threats and competitors in areas that we slide into.”