26 April 2019

The Consolidation of Political Power in China Under Xi Jinping

by Timothy R. Heath
Document submitted April 11, 2019, as an addendum to testimony before the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission on February 7, 2019.PDF file 0.1 MB 

Would Beijing’s skepticism of the PLA’s operational capabilities be the same if China were involved in a conflict with one of its neighbors rather than with the United States? 

• How would the PLA’s perceived operational deficits constrain Beijing if it were contemplating a confrontation with a non-treaty ally of the United States, like Vietnam or India? 

• How might the PLA's perceived operational deficits constrain Beijing if it were contemplating a confrontation with a treaty ally of the United States where U.S. intervention might be in question. For example, if China attacked Philippine nongovernmental boats operating in areas of competing maritime claims? What about a conflict with Japan if U.S. intervention was in doubt?

No comments: