How does the Chinese military compare with other great powers?
Despite rapid strides in military modernization, China still has a lot of catching up to do. It certainly lags behind the U.S. military across the board. Its equipment is mostly of 1980s or 1990s vintage. Most of its neighbors, including Japan, India, South Korea, and Taiwan, have more advanced and better-trained air forces and navies than it does. Training, morale, and logistics are serious challenges as well. Joint operations and coordination among various branches of the armed forces are a work in progress. Of course, China has closed the gap significantly in the past two decades, but it would be a stretch to say that China has the world’s second-most capable military. President Hu Jintao is supposed to step down in 2012. Who will be the next president? Is there democracy within the party? Xi Jinping, the 56-year-old vice president, is Hu’s designated heir. Although the party leadership has made pledges of increasing democratic procedures within the party, actual progress to this en
