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Experts warn U.S. at risk of losing war with Russia or China amid ‘eroded military superiority’

Armenpress 11:32, 15 November, 2018

YEREVAN, NOVEMBER 15, ARMENPRESS. The Trump administration's new National Defense Strategy is insufficiently resourced and the US runs the risk of a military defeat by China or Russia, according to a report by a congressionally mandated panel of bipartisan experts that was released Wednesday.

The warning comes as the Trump administration is weighing a possible cut to the defense budget following a major boost in fiscal years 2018 and 2019, CNN reports.

“The security and wellbeing of the United States are at greater risk than at any time in decades. America’s military superiority—the hard-power backbone of its global influence and national security—has eroded to a dangerous degree. Rivals and adversaries are challenging the United States on many fronts and in many domains. America’s ability to defend its allies, its partners, and its own vital interests is increasingly in doubt. If the nation does not act promptly to remedy these circumstances, the consequences will be grave and lasting”, the report says.

While the report applauds the administration for focusing more on Russia and China as opposed to counterterrorism missions in places like the Middle East, it slams the administration's strategy for not explaining how the goals of that strategy will be met.

The report warns that given current trends and Russian and Chinese efforts to bolster their own military capabilities, "the US military could suffer unacceptably high casualties" and "might struggle to win or perhaps lose, a war against China or Russia."

"The United States is particularly at risk of being overwhelmed should its military be forced to fight on two or more fronts simultaneously," it adds.

The Pentagon issued a statement saying it "welcomes the release of the report by the Commission," saying that the report "affirms the strategic direction set out on the National Defense Strategy, as well as its key priorities."

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan



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