Marine Corps Gen. Joe Dunford, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, expounded on the challenges the United States faces amid near-peer competition with Russia and China during an interview for the Washington Post’s ''Transformers'' series.
1
On China:
Chinese President Xi Jinping has been clear that he wants China to be a global power with global power projection capability. “Among the capabilities they are developing is aircraft carriers, which would certainly indicate a desire to project power beyond their territorial waters,” he said.
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On Russia:
In a perfect world, Russia would comply with the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, setting the conditions for broader conversations about other arms control agreements.
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On maintaining the U.S. military’s competitive edge:
“I am confident in saying we can defend the homeland and our way of life, we can meet our alliance commitments today, and we have an aggregate competitive advantage over any potential adversary,” he said. “I am equally confident in saying that if we don’t change the trajectory we are on, … whoever is sitting in my seat five or seven years from now will not be as confident as I am.”
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On Google employees backing away from working with the Defense Department:
“I am not sure that the people at Google would enjoy a world order that is informed by the norms and standards of Russia or China,” he said.