Military Balance of South Asia

Hosting some of the world’s largest economies and militaries, the region must purposefully and wholeheartedly move towards a perception of threat reduction and collective security

China’s military spending was approximated at US$ 77.95 billion in 2010, and is expected to grow by 12.7% to US$ 91.5 billion by 2012. Estimates of China’s military budget have always different, and according to various standards, may either range between the range of US$ 35-60 billion, or may even be as high as US$ 200 billion. The US DoD, SIPRI, RAND, CIA and DIA all have different estimates of China’s military budget, according to different sources as well as different standards. Due to China’s incomparable economic growth, it state services and military apparatus have achieved quantum leaps during the last two decades. Perceived designs of China’s political economy paint it as a hegemonic power that seeks to destabilize its neighbors and usurp the resources and riches of the region that is in its reach. Sino-Japanese confrontations and other engagements in South China sea – especially around the disputed Spratly Islands – have been painted as aggressive maneuvers where China was to blame; in reality, it was China’s awesome military capacity in the tactical dimension, coupled with tough diplomatic engagement in the strategic dimension, that helped China achieve her objectives, regardless of how the international media shaped public opinion about it. The so-called string of pearls that China is creating in the Pacific and Indian oceans is also a globalist theory that is designed to push Japan, South Korea, Taiwan (or the disputed Republic of China, rather), the Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, and even India, closer to the American perception of China’s military ‘designs’. Despite such concerns, China’s military modernization and secretive development is unparalleled; the People’s Liberation Army, Navy and Air Force operate at the cutting edge of military technology, and are significantly developing their conventional capabilities through research, development, testing and improvement.

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