China Ramps Up Military Production as US Lags

What’s happening: An internal U.S. Navy report revealed key shipbuilding programs are years behind schedule. Officials declined to provide briefings to reporters. The damaging report comes amid an unprecedented Chinese military buildup that one U.S. official called “a historic trajectory.”

Why it matters: China’s buildup, and the lack of an American response, could portend disaster for the U.S. should war break out — a likely possibility within a few years, according to some U.S. officials.

• China advancing: Chinese President Xi Jinping has told his generals to be ready for an invasion of Taiwan by 2027. If the Chinese successfully take Taiwan, they will break out of the first so-called “island chain,” enabling them to expand their reach.

Falling behind: Experts say China is increasingly adopting a “wartime footing” when it comes to the speed of defense production, whereas the U.S. is on a “peacetime” one. The Biden administration has tried to compensate with efforts to limit China’s soft power in Asia. But the problem of China’s growing military power remains.

• Keep in mind: America’s military still dwarfs all others. The U.S. has 11 aircraft carriers, while China has 2. China’s progress is not an immediate problem for the U.S., but if trends continue, it will become one.

Zoom out: Former Trump defense official Elbridge Colby has warned that China’s construction of long-range aircraft suggests it is planning on military campaigns beyond Taiwan. The communist regime is also in the process of building bases abroad, including potentially on the Atlantic coast of Africa.