(June 23, New Delhi, Sri Lanka Guardian) Threatened by the expanding influence of China in its backyard, India has sought to bolster the sale of miltary hardware to Sri Lanka. India is apparently concerned with the growing reliance of Sri Lanka on Pakistan and China for its military requirements.
Several aspects of China's military development have surprised US analysts, including the pace and scope of its strategic forces modernization. China's military expansion is already such as to alter regional military balances.
Long-term trends in China's strategic nuclear forces modernization, land- and sea-based access denial capabilities, and emerging precision-strike weapons have the potential to pose credible threats to modern militaries operating in the region.
China is also modernizing its long-range ballistic missile force by replacing older missiles with newer, more survivable ones. China is deploying a new road-mobile solid-propellant intercontinental range ballistic missile (ICBM), the DF-31, and an extended-range version called the DF-31A.
"Industrial espionage in foreign research and production facilities and illegal transfers of technology are used to gain desired capabilities. Where technology targets remain difficult to acquire, foreign investors are attracted to China via contracts that are often written to ensure Chinese oversight, with the eventual goal of displacing foreigners from the companies brought into China," noted the Indian Defense department.
- Sri Lanka Guardian
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