China threat dominates US defence debate

Washington, May 1 China’s growing military assertiveness and its alignment with Russia, Iran and North Korea emerged as a central theme during a high-stakes US Senate hearing on defence spending, with potential implications for India’s strategic calculus.

Senate Armed Services Committee, Chairman Roger Wicker warned that the United States is in “the most dangerous security environment since World War II,” pointing to intensifying competition with Beijing.

“We’re locked in a competition with Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party,” Wicker said, adding that the contest would determine whether the 21st century remains “American-led” or is shaped by “authoritarian, autocratic regimes.”

He described China as part of an “axis of aggressors” alongside Russia, Iran and North Korea, saying these countries are “united around this goal to oppose America’s interests” and those of democratic allies.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said the proposed $1.5 trillion defence budget is designed to address a “complex threat environment across multiple theatres,” with China at its core.

“We’re rebuilding a military… that instils nothing less than unrelenting fear in our adversaries,” Hegseth said, emphasising investments in drones, missile defence and advanced technologies to counter peer competitors.

Joint Chiefs Chairman Dan Caine said Beijing is aggressively integrating AI across its military.

“They are attempting to integrate AI across the range of their warfighting functions,” Caine said, noting applications in command, intelligence and combat operations.

He cautioned that maintaining US technological superiority is critical, as any erosion could “put us at risk.”

Lawmakers warned that China is closely watching US military operations globally. “I suspect that my counterpart in China is watching very closely,” Caine said, referring to recent US operations, including in Iran.

Both Senators and Pentagon leadership expressed concerns about supply chains and dependence on China for critical materials and technologies. Hegseth stressed the need to “not be dependent on China on anything that’s critical to our supply chain.”

For India, the developments carry significant implications as Washington’s framing of China as the primary long-term threat reinforces the strategic convergence between the US and India in the Indo-Pacific.

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