Quote:PLAAF has mostly Russian fighters. If you take them away, PLAAF is pretty much a sitting duck.

Quote:Senior U.S. officials told a House panel on Jan. 13 that China continues modernizing its missile, naval and fighter aircraft arsenals at a rapid rate, but they raised new concerns about the Asian giant's efforts to develop new offensive cyber and space assets.



China's Peoples' Liberation Army is making "significant strides" in developing cyberwarfare concepts that range from defending Chinese networks to conducting "offensive operations against adversary networks,"



"We are seeing China's emergence as an international space power," Gregson said. "China is investing heavily in a broad range of military and dual-use space programs, including reconnaissance, navigation and timing, and communication satellites, as well as its manned program."



Gregson cited China's January 2007 satellite shot-down as an example of its "growing" ability to take out space systems.



Gregson noted China's announced 2009 defense budget topped out at $70.6 billion. Pentagon brass think the number actually comes in around $150 billion, or more, Gregson said.



According to 2009 data the Pacific Command chief presented the House committee, that weaponry includes 27 destroyers, 48 frigates, more than 70 patrol crafts armed with missiles, 55 amphibious vessels, 40 mine warfare ships and 50 support crafts.



China also possesses what he called "the largest conventional submarine force in the world, totaling more than 60 boats" to go along with "a number of" nuclear-powered fast attack and ballistic missile subs. The PLA, Willard contended, is also developing a new submarine-launched ballistic missile, the JL-2, which is "capable of reaching the West Coast of the United States."

Quote:in 2007, a Chinese attack submarine successfully penetrated the defensive screen of the USS Kitty Hawk in the Pacific Ocean and surfaced within easy “kill” range of the U.S. carrier. That indicates that (A) the Chinese submarine crews are far more skilled that previously thought, that the U.S. Navy is way too overconfident, or © both options could be true. It is actually good the Chinese submarine surfaced so the U.S. Navy had the chance to experience a “wake up call” and tighten its obviously porous defensive screen around its carriers.

Quote:China now has the world’s largest submarine fleet and it is growing at a rapid rate as China’s military expansion continues. The analysis states that China has “the largest conventional submarine force in the world, totaling more than 60 boats” plus “a number of nuclear-powered fast-attack and ballistic missile subs.” Does that mean China has approximately 70 or more submarines?

Quote:President K R Naryanan is understood to have given his verbal assent to a government proposal that aims at raising additional tax revenue for meeting the expenditure arising out of the Kargil operations.

Quote:Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha had a half-an-hour-long meeting with Narayanan on July 13 to apprise him of the necessity to impose a mid-term tax to finance the cost of the Kargil operations.

Quote:America has habit of creating perceived enemies ala cold war, wmd's now china to ensure mollahs for its MIC. No read to read too much into this.

Quote:Some snippets from Defense News:

digg.com/.../Chinese_Submarine_Out_Maneuvers_USN_Carrier_Group -



1 Feb 2010 ... A Taiwanese newspaper has reported that a Chinese submarine entered Taiwan's territorial waters



So what.Question is would it have been shot or not.

Quote:I have come to rely more on bharat and arun after reading a lot .Hope u listen to what they are saying.

Quote:Again maybe 1944 hitler had more submarines .Most of them are rust buckets.

Quote:True india is lagging , must get their act together .Hopefully [u]another year and a half.[/u]

Quote:Again true.But India has bug proof TN capability for time being as well as nuclear weapons.China to my mind will not take such foolish chances.It might be annihilated along with India totally.Even their three gorges dam is vulnerable to indian missiles even without nuclear weapons.At least a third of chinese will be washed off this earth.

Quote:I guess I have put ur mind to rest if not we can debate this further

Quote:Again the point being???

Quote:Correct GST should roll by march 2011 will start to see sustained improvement after that

Quote:State media reported that China’s local governments borrowed 3.8 trillion yuan ($556 billion) from banks last year, to keep the economy humming. They also raised 450 billion yuan ($65.9 billion) indirectly via the bond market. Add those debts to Beijing's own, and the real 2009 fiscal deficit could be 15 per cent of 2009's GDP.

Quote:That sounds scary, especially as local governments may not have spent their borrowed funds wisely. But a sovereign debt crisis is unlikely. Even if Beijing absorbed all the local debts, total public borrowing would remain safely below 60 per cent of GDP. Beijing is unlikely to acknowledge the debts as its own. That means future defaults could be left for banks to mop up. That 3 trillion yuan is equal to 10 times the 2008 earnings of the three largest listed banks and would be enough to bring the non-performing loan ratio in the banking system up from less than 2 percent to 9 percent, based on current asset levels.

Quote:India on Monday said it is shoring up its military presence in the northern borders and upgrading infrastructure along the border with China in the light of Beijing's rapid infrastructure development and its upgraded military force projection in Tibet Autonomous Region and Xinjiang province.



“India also remains conscious and alert about the implications of China's military modernisation…rapid infrastructure development in the Tibet Autonomous Region and Xinjiang province has considerably upgraded China's military force projection capability and strategic operational flexibility,” the Defence Ministry said in its2009-10 annual report released on Monday.



While efforts to build 73 roads near Sino-Indian border have been taken up with vigour, Indian Air Force upgraded advanced landing grounds, including at Daulat Beg Oldie, to facilitate landing of AN-32 transport aircraft while the Army is raising two Mountain Divisions in the north-east and plans to acquire ultra-light howitzers that can be dropped via helicopters at higher altitudes.



The report also said that based on strategic and cooperative partnership, relations with China progressed well during the last year. It said there was convergence of views and actions on various issues in international fora and a regular mechanism for exchanges in military sphere has been established.



In its 2008-09 report, the Ministry said that China's defence modernisation needed to be monitored carefully in the foreseeable future for the implications it can have on the security and defence of the country.





[b]Ties with Pakistan [/b]

Turning to Pakistan, in the latest report India reasserted that meaningful dialogue with Pakistan could be possible only in an environment free of terror and said Islamabad should take measures to dismantle terror infrastructure on its soil directed against India.



While expressing concern with the worsening security situation inside Pakistan as also with continuing infiltration in Jammu and Kashmir, in its latest annual report the Defence Ministry underscored that India exercised “exemplary restraint in the face of gravest provocation.”



“The increasing incidents of terrorism within Pakistan targeting, inter alia, the security establishment and senior military personnel, and the rising tide of extremism underlined the serious threat to Pakistan itself and to the region,” the report said.



On several occasions, Defence Minister A.K. Antony mentioned that some 42 terror camps operate on the other side of the border. The report said these demonstrate the continuing ambivalence of Pakistan in its actions against terrorist organisations.



“India has never shut the door for dialogue with Pakistan, and is of the view that meaningful dialogue with Pakistan is possible only in an environment free of terror or threat of terror. This calls for Pakistan to take effective measures to dismantle the infrastructure of terrorism on its soil which is directed against India,” the report said.





[b]Cooperation with Dhaka [/b]

On the other hand, it praised Bangladesh and noted that since the restoration of multi-party democracy there, relations with Dhaka have strengthened. It also appreciated increasing cooperation with Bangladesh in security matters, especially vis-à-vis Indian insurgent groups operating from its territory.



Similarly, it observed that cooperation with Myanmar in security matters is being enhanced, while India continues developmental activities in the country which lies at the tri-junction of South and South-East Asia.



On Sri Lanka, the report said, there lies “a historic opportunity” to find lasting political settlement in Northern Sri Lanka after the conclusion of operations against the LTTE.



On Afghanistan, the latest report said that security and stability there was critical to India's own security concerns and takes note of reports of deployment of additional 30,000 U.S. troops in the AfPak region by May this year and President Barack Obama's July 2011 time frame for troop's withdrawal from Afghanistan.



On Iran's controversial Nuclear Programme, the report said India continues to support a peaceful resolution of the issue which would be in the interest of peace and stability in West Asia.

Quote:PTI, Mar 30, 2010, 04.25pm IST



NEW DELHI: The US military aid to Pakistan is a matter of concern for India which has been conveyed to the Obama administration, Air Chief Marshal P V Naik said on Tuesday.



"The aid being given to Pakistan is a matter of concern to us definitely and we have made it known. We have not hidden anything," Naik said soon after taking over as the Chairman, Chiefs of Staffs Committee here.



The US has been providing F-16 combat jets, air-to-air missiles and other equipment worth millions of dollars to Pakistan as military aid for fighting the Taliban terrorists on its soil. Pakistan is scheduled to get 18 of the Block 52 F-16s, Oliver Hazard Perry Class frigate by winter and is expected to receive Shadow Drones within a year.



Islamabad is also to receive equipment capable of converting 1,000 traditional munitions into "smart bombs" that can strike targets with precisions.



In the last three years, the US has provided 14 F-16s, five fast patrol boats, 115 self-propelled howitzer field artillery cannons, more than 450 vehicles, hundreds of night- vision goggles, day and night scopes, radios, protective vests and first aid items to Pakistan's security forces.



With this new arms aid, US counterinsurgency assistance fund for Pakistan is slated to increase to USD 1.2 billion in fiscal year 2011 from $700 million in the current fiscal.



India has asked the US to ensure that the weapons supplied to Pakistan to fight Taliban and extremists elements are not directed against this country.



Asked if the military aid issue could have any impact on the chances of the American companies in the fray to supply 126 combat aircraft to the Indian Air Force, Naik said, "As far as 126 multi-role combat aircraft deal is concerned, it will be a fair and square assessment... presently, there is no connection between the two."



He said the IAF was going ahead with the trials of the six companies offering their aircraft and "after that, we will sit down to finalise it (the award of the contract.)"



On reports that the IAF was developing its air fields in the Eastern sector to counter the Chinese threat, the IAF chief said the upgrade of infrastructure in the region was "long overdue" but was not "country specific." He added the air fields were being upgraded to operate the latest modern aircraft in the IAF inventory.



Asked if the recent test-firings of the Agni, Prithvi and Dhanush ballistic missiles were aimed at sending out a message, Naik said, "Whenever we have to give a message to anybody, we give it loud and clear. Whenever there is a message to be given, we will let you know."