Publication

This testimony deals with questions on the overall context of the People's Republic of China's (PRC's) emerging use of orbital systems to support military modernization efforts. These include the country's emerging anti-access/area-denial capabilities in the western Pacific, including the impact of the PRC's space program on the Chinese concept of Comprehensive National Power. The speaker assesses the likelihood of US-China conflicts in the 2012- 2020 time-frame occurring and argues that China's own growing military use of space may constrain their counter-space options in the long run to a greater extent than some US war gaming has suggested.