• Military

• WMD Menu                           

• Introduction
• Systems
• Facilities
• Agencies
• Operations
• Countries
• Hot Documents
• News
• Reports
• Policy
• Budget
• Congress
• Links

• Intelligence
• Homeland Security
• Space

Washington, D.C. Sept. 12 (CNA) Mainland China is bolstering its capacity for joint air, land, and sea operations while developing a computer warfare capacity and strengthening its communications against monitoring, according to a US report.

The Washington Times newspaper said on Tuesday that the report was written by Al Santoli, an author and military historian who is a national security aide to Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Ca).

Santoli, who concluded a two-week fact-finding trip to Taiwan and Thailand in August, also reported that Beijing's People's Liberation Army (PLA) is "providing Burmese Wa tribesmen with weapons, military advice and materials for distributing illegal methamphetamine within neighboring Thailand."

"The PLA's modernization and joint-services fighting capability are developing at a rate far ahead of the Pentagon's previous predictions," the Washington Times quoted Santoli as reporting.

Santoli's report was presented to members of the House International Relations Committee and House leaders last week.

In his report, Santoli said that the most dramatic improvements in mainland China's military are in its joint warfare and information warfare.

Santoli also quoted senior Taiwan military intelligence analysts as saying that the PLA is "showing surprising rapid advances in joint maneuvers between naval, air force, marine, paratroop, armored and missile units."

Beijing is also stepping up military activities in Southeast Asia, Santoli said, adding that Beijing naval and ground forces conducted joint exercises with Burmese forces in two areas of Burma in August. He also found that military observers from Pakistan were present during the exercises.

According to Santoli, Beijing has also set up an electronic intelligence base on Coco Island in the Bay of Bengal.

The report calls for increased military and intelligence cooperation between the United States and Taiwan. It also calls for bolstering Taiwan's defenses with Aegis-equipped warships and early warning radar and upgrading Taiwan's air force, according to the newspaper. (By Jay Chen & Ed Chen)