Russia and China are the main strategic rivals of the United States and the "revisionist powers" who are trying to "change the balance of power in their favor."

This was stated by the head of the Pentagon Mark Esper during a speech at the American center of the Rand Corporation.

“In this era of great power rivalry, the US Department of Defense has identified China and then Russia as our main strategic rivals.

These revisionist states use predatory economic policies, political sabotage and military force in an attempt to change the balance of power in their favor and often to the detriment of others, ”said Esper.

In his speech, he stressed that the Russian Federation and the PRC are building up and modernizing their armed forces, as well as "extending their potentials to outer space and cyberspace in order to exert greater pressure on other countries."

At the same time, the head of the Pentagon clarified that China is exercising its "malicious influence" through the implementation of the "One Belt - One Road" initiative.

“Because of this project, weak states found themselves in colossal debts, which forced them to agree to economic aid from China to the detriment of their own sovereignty,” Esper said.

In addition, he pointed to "Beijing's aggression and its failure to comply with its obligations in the South China and East China Seas."

According to the US Secretary of Defense, all these "challenges" are pushing the United States to modernize its armed forces.

According to Esper, the United States has already taken a number of measures in response to "threats" allegedly emanating from Moscow and Beijing.

“We are also in the process of modernizing how we maintain our combat readiness.

We have reorganized our combat-ready forces into planned forces of immediate reaction and forces of rapid response to emergencies, ”said the head of the Pentagon.

  • Pentagon chief Mark Esper

  • Reuters

  • © Erin Scott

Esper also noted that the defense department has implemented "high alert concepts such as dynamic force deployment recently demonstrated by US tactical bombers in the Indo-Pacific and European theaters."

"(This. -

RT

) provides confidence to our allies and helps deter our competitors," the defense minister said.

Esper also announced the creation of a stronger fleet, the number of ships of which is planned to increase to over 355 units.

“These future naval forces will be more balanced in their capabilities to provide lethal damaging effects from the air, sea and underwater directions,” the minister said.

As a result, Esper turned to the American authorities with a request "instead of canceling the unused naval funds by the end of the year, transfer them directly to the shipbuilding budget."

At the same time, the head of the Pentagon pointed out the need to strengthen ties with military allies.

“We all have a collective responsibility to prepare for the challenges of the future, while at the same time responding to today's security challenges.

We cannot indulge in complacency and must take into account the changing context, otherwise we risk facing even greater aggression and additional challenges to our values ​​and security, ”Esper said.

After that, he called on the allied states to increase defense spending "to at least 2% of GDP and make the necessary investments to improve capabilities."

Part of American strategy

The head of the Pentagon recalled that all the changes he announced will take place within the framework of the US National Defense Strategy, adopted in 2018, in which Moscow and Beijing were named the main rivals of Washington.

The document, as noted by the defense minister, focuses on three "areas of effort": increasing efficiency and readiness, strengthening alliances and building partnerships, as well as aligning resources with the country's priorities.

  • Pentagon building

  • AFP

It is worth noting that Esper has previously stated about "threats" allegedly emanating from Russia and China.

So, in May, the head of the Pentagon announced that the United States is engaged in adapting its military potential due to Russian and Chinese "threats."

“The National Defense Strategy directs our efforts to adapt our forces to the security environment generated by new threats from our strategic competitors - China and Russia,” the Defense Minister said.

And in early August, on Fox News, Esper explained the regrouping of American troops in Europe by advancing towards the borders of the Russian Federation, strengthening the containment of Russia and strengthening NATO.

"Typical US Rhetoric"

As Vladimir Batyuk, head of the Center for Political-Military Studies of the Institute for the United States and Canada of the Russian Academy of Sciences, noted, Mark Esper does not stop talking about the challenges allegedly emanating from Russia and China, since "he wants to obtain additional funding for the Pentagon."

“The US military is often engaged in scaring the Russian, and now the Chinese threat, in order to force the congressmen to fork out.

Now for the United States is an extremely difficult period - the country's economy is negatively affected by the coronavirus pandemic, the election campaign is in full swing, and even racially motivated protests do not stop, so Esper resorts to the already traditional method to knock money out of Congress for the defense department, ”said expert in an interview with RT.

The head of the Pentagon has just now stepped up anti-Russian and anti-Chinese rhetoric, since in the United States "there is a debate over budget funds for next year," Batiuk explained.

"And, of course, the US Secretary of Defense will here by all means advocate before Congress the need to maximize defense spending," the analyst said.

Vasily Kashin, a military expert and senior research fellow at the Higher School of Economics, adheres to a similar position.

According to him, the accusations of the American side that Russia and China have "aggressive" intentions is "a typical US rhetoric, which has nothing to do with reality."

"These are already such ritual words that are pronounced deliberately in the midst of another struggle for the budget," he noted in a commentary on RT.

As Batyuk pointed out, Esper is “dramatically exaggerating,” claiming that Russia and China are modernizing their armed forces in order to put more pressure on other countries.

“In reality, Moscow and Beijing are increasing their defenses to ensure their own security,” the analyst said.

In addition, Batyuk called "ridiculous" the accusations of the head of the Pentagon against China about the allegedly harmful impact of the "One Belt - One Road" initiative on other countries.

"Everything looks very extremely funny, especially considering the fact that the main imperialist power is precisely the United States, which is investing in other states, clearly not for charity purposes, but to maximize profits," the expert explained.

  • US Navy ship

  • Reuters

  • © US Navy / Senior Chief Mass Communication Specialist Ahron Arendes / Handout

In turn, Vasily Kashin added that it is the United States, and by no means China, that "seriously limits the sovereignty of its partners."

“In the United States, all alliances are organized on a hierarchical basis and assume that allies are obliged to unconditionally support the American political line, sometimes to the detriment of their interests,” the analyst said.

At the same time, Kashin predicted that the partners of the United States would not react in any way to Esper's call to increase their military budgets to 2% of GDP.

“Now these countries have been hit by the coronavirus, creating a new economic crisis.

Therefore, they cannot go for any sharp increase in costs, ”the expert believes.

At the same time, according to Kashin, the election results, whatever they may be, will not significantly change the direction of the Pentagon's work.

“There is a consensus between Republicans and Democrats on the issue of containing China and Russia.

For this reason, the change in personalities can only change the attitude towards individual programs or initiatives of the defense department.

In general, the line on strengthening the armed forces and building up capabilities to combat the Russian Federation and the PRC will continue, "the analyst concluded.