“The challenges that Chinese leadership confronts at present are enormous, and an unsuccessful China is perhaps more worrisome than a prosperous one. China is confronting major internal problems that could have an impact on its strategic course. The country will face increasing demographic pressures as its population ages. Due to its ‘one child’ policy, China may grow old before it grows rich. Furthermore, a cultural preference for male heirs will create a surplus male population nearing 30 million by 2020.”

… the new Joint Operating Environment (JOE) 2010 report (pdf).

DOD Report Forecasts Future Military Environment | Secrecy News

Many experts say the decline began with the end of the Soviet Union. When Russia became capitalist, they say, so did its military industry. Like much of Russian industry, it was privatized haphazardly. For example, factories and the engineering departments that designed what these factories made were sold separately.

Over time, this had a deleterious effect on quality. Big companies that inherited export contracts with China, India and the Middle East made profits on older designs and legacy parts but did little to upgrade.

As Its Arms Industry Withers, Russia Buys Abroad – NYTimes.com

CIA drones are killing terrorists — and civilians — in Pakistan almost every day. The unmanned aircraft are becoming the weapon of choice in the fight against al-Qaida and its allies. But the political, military and moral consequences are incalculable. SPIEGEL ONLINE has investigated Barack Obama’s remote-controlled campaign against terrorism. By SPIEGEL ONLINE Staff more…

• Remote Warriors: How Drone Pilots Wage War
• The Debate on Push-Button War: Are Drones Worth Their Drawbacks?
• Putting Islamabad in a Tight Spot: How the CIA Uses Pakistan as a Launch Pad for Drones
• In the Crosshairs: How al-Qaida & Co. Are Responding to Drone Warfare
• ‘Finger of God’: The German Army’s Enthusiasm for Drones
• Photo Gallery: Prominent Victims of Drone Attacks
• Photo Gallery: Waging War with the Click of a Mouse

Other independent experts are equally critical of the Mistral procurement as a means of addressing the current condition of the Russian navy. Ruslan Pukhov, the Director of the Moscow-based Center of Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST) summarized the venture: “When we cannot build the necessary number of corvettes and frigates, let alone destroyers, throwing away several hundred million Euros on an obvious luxury item is like living in a hovel and buying a Bentley and parking it in the yard together with old bangers. This is an obvious attempt by a pauper to buy a luxury item” (Center TV, March 7).

Read More…

Iran announced Sunday that it has started a new production line of highly accurate, short range cruise missiles, which would add a new element to the country’s already imposing arsenal.

News from The Associated Press

But now the party’s over. The United States, Pentagon strategists say, is quickly losing its ability to barge in without permission. Potential target countries and even some lukewarm allies are figuring out ingenious ways to blunt American power without trying to meet it head-on, using a combination of high-tech and low-tech jujitsu.

…

As Defense Secretary Robert Gates summed up the problem this month, countries in places where the United States has strategic interests — including the Persian Gulf and the Pacific — are building “sophisticated, new technologies to deny our forces access to the global commons of sea, air, space and cyberspace.”

China, Iran Creating ‘No-Go’ Zones to Thwart U.S. Military Power — Politics Daily

As Russian President Dmitri Medvedev wound up a three-day state visit to Paris on Wednesday, he had to be pleased with the results. After all, he virtually cinched an unprecedented military deal, bagged a significant gas contract and watched his French host, President Nicolas Sarkozy, dismiss American and European misgivings about his embrace of Moscow by treating Medvedev like his newest best friend forever. There wasn’t a whole lot for the Russian leader not to love.

But what’s behind Sarkozy’s Russophile display?

France-Russia Talks: Europe Wary Over Warship Sale – TIME

The United States has informally told Japan it will retire its sea-based Tomahawk cruise missiles carrying nuclear warheads, in line with President Barack Obama’s policy to pursue a world free of atomic weapons, government sources said Monday.

U.S. to retire nuclear Tomahawk missiles | The Japan Times Online