China’s communist regime is the leading threat to the United States and is operating with the intent of displacing the United States as a global superpower, according to a senior Pentagon official.
“The reason I came back into government, more than any other by far, is my concern about China’s military modernization program,” said Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall during a Sept. 29 talk at the Center for American Progress, a progressive think tank.
“When people ask me what my priorities are I tend to say ‘China, China, China.’”
Kendall said that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is systematically investing in capabilities intended to counter and destroy the United States’ ability to project power globally.
These include efforts to develop weapons that could counter or destroy American satellites, aircraft carriers, airfields, and communications and logistics nodes, Kendall said.
“The only nation-state that has the capacity, the resources, and the strategic intent to really threaten the United States as a leader in the world … is China,” he said.