The so called Chinese Military threat

Nobody doubts the fact that China is a rising power and would continuously be so for the foreseeable future. It has the land, the people, the economy and the aspirations to be a great power competing head to head against the United States. It has already (or will be) in the near future, the world’s second biggest economy overtaking the Japanese and will be the biggest in the next 10 years or so (according to some estimates). Every country is trying to cash in to the Chinese Miracle but at the same time, fears are being raised that along with the economic rise, the Chinese military is also being modernized. It was just a matter of time, before the military would have its budget raised.

The main complaint is that the budget which is being presented to the world is not transparent and it masks the hundreds of billions of dollars in more hidden expenses. The United States and the rest of its allies are worried about it, mainly the United States since it is seen as competing with the Chinese for influence in Eastern Asia. It is also worried that the Chinese have never renounced their desire to ultimately force the unification of Taiwan which the U.S. has by law declared to defend in case of Chinese invasion. Other countries of the region while profiteering from the Chinese market are also warily looking at the increasing power of the Chinese armed forces.