Adapting to US’s new defence strategy
THE new US defence strategy, which shifts the focus from combating terrorism to rivalry between superpowers, and names Russia and China as the main US competitors, attempts to convince the American public that colossal budget appropriations to defence contractors are normal practice.
But some of the strategy’s wording was obviously prompted by Russia’s latest successes on the international scene. Americans believe Russia has outperformed them, and many analysts say the US is reverting to Cold War-era tactics. Their opponents argue that the world has changed and weapons do not always play the main role nowadays.
At any rate, Russia will find a way to respond. President Vladimir Putin has announced a new state armaments programme for 2018-2027. In addition, the new US defence strategy will most likely encourage Russia and China to strengthen their co-operation, and Beijing is already considering such a possibility.
On January 19, US Defence Secretary James Mattis presented a new US defence strategy that follows up on the National Security Strategy published in December last year. Both documents state that Russia and China are seeking to break the existing world order.
“Inter-state strategic competition, not terrorism, is now the primary concern in US national security,” the defence strategy summary says. It also states that successful competition with these two countries would not be possible without additional defence funding.
Speaking at a news briefing in Washington, cited by Voice of America, former US deputy under secretary of defence, Dov S Zakheim, described the new strategy as a very clear message addressed much more to Moscow than to Beijing. Russia responded calmly. Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov voiced regret over the strategy’s tone, which he described as confrontational.
“In any country the military would like to justify additional expenditures. This factor should probably be taken into account, too. But we find it regrettable that instead of conducting a normal dialogue and abiding by international law, the US is trying to prove its leadership through such confrontational concepts and strategies,” Lavrov said at a news conference in New York.
“Nevertheless, we are ready for dialogue and we are ready to discuss military doctrines, as we did before when the military in both countries were strengthening mutual confidence. I am convinced that there are many reasonable people in the US who understand that strategic stability should be maintained, all risks that arise should be averted, and that this cannot be done without co-operation between Russia and the US,” the minister said.
Time magazine described the new US defence strategy as a return to the Cold War. Fyodor Lukyanov, the editor-in-chief of the Russia in Global Affairs journal, agrees with this assessment. He believes Russian-US relations have formally gone back to the Cold War-era model: military competition, potential arms race, and deterrence. But the real situation is different.
“Firstly, the clash between Moscow and Washington is not central to the international system, which is polycentric, chaotic and diverse. It is for this reason that the restoration of the common conceptual outlook (balance of power, national interests, etc) cannot revive the mechanisms of ensuring global stability that worked 40 years ago.
“Cold War-era recipes will not be effective any more as there are too many other actors who do not listen either to Russia or America.
“Secondly, all borders are permeable in the global world, and no one knows how to regulate external influence on states. The two countries have so far not been able to agree on mutual non-interference, as each understands it differently,”Lukyanov said.
In his opinion, the document published by the Pentagon accurately reflects the new outlook represented by President Donald Trump. The post-Cold War era when America unexpectedly became a world hegemon is over.
“For decades the US has enjoyed uncontested and dominant superiority in every operating domain. We could generally deploy our forces when we wanted, assemble them where we wanted, and operate how we wanted. Today, every domain is contested – air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace,” the US defence strategy says.
Lukyanov thinks that Trump’s America is readjusting its position in the world. A key element of this process is the emphasis on power as a means of ensuring the US’s global superiority and ability to advance its own interests in every way possible. Power means classic military power, which requires clearly identified competitors.
What does this mean for Russia, which along with China has been officially named a US strategic competitor? Moscow believes that the emphasis placed by the US strategy on technological advancement will allow Russian generals to demand more funding for similar purposes. Russia will seek to minimise risks, respond asymmetrically, and try to take advantage of the fact that the world views America as the main source of instability.
Vladimir Putin said earlier that the focus would be on supplying the army with high-precision air, land, and sea-based weapons, attack drones, individual equipment, and new reconnaissance, communication and electronic warfare systems.
The new armaments programme for 2018-2027 prioritises work on the new Sarmat and S-500 strategic missiles, and Tsirkon hypersonic missiles, as well as the Armata tank, and the Kurganets and Bumerang armoured vehicles. Deputy Defence Minister Yuri Borisov has said that in the middle of the next decade Russia could create completely new weapons that would change military tactics and strategy drastically.
In the meantime, the new US defence strategy is undoubtedly pushing America’s two main competitors, Russia and China, towards closer relations. Like Russia, China has censured the strategy. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying has said it was distorting her country’s diplomatic and defence policy.
The military attaché of the Chinese Embassy in Russia, Major-General Kui Yanwei, on January 22 called on Russia to jointly resist US pressure.
Speaking at a meeting with the chairman of the Federation Council Committee on Defence and Security, General Viktor Bondarev said China and Russia should stand together against the US to ensure peace in their regions, and in the world.
“The US and Western countries in the European part are holding back Russia, while in the Asian part they are holding back China,” Kui Yanwei said. He stressed the need to find a common response to the challenges from the US and its allies.
Vanyna is an Independent Media correspondent based in Moscow