US Defense Secretary Robert Gates (L) meets with Chinese Central Military Commission Vice Chairman General Xu CaihouWashington has expressed concern at China's military build-up and modernization, pressing for more transparency from the Asian giant on its intentions amid double-digit increases in Beijing's armed forces budget.
The Pentagon chief said last month that China's increasingly advanced weaponry could undermine US military power in the Pacific, as American aircraft carriers and short-range fighter jets faced potential threats from missiles and anti-ship and anti-satellite systems.
China has boosted its conventional missile capabilities to such an extent that an attack involving Chinese short-range ballistic missiles "could cut every runway at Taiwan's fighter bases and destroy any aircraft parked in the open," a RAND Corporation report concluded in August. FULL STORY
