Did you know that more than 80% of Americans are worried about China‘s military expansion? According to a recent poll by the Ronald Reagan Institute, the majority of respondents express varying levels of concern about China’s growing military power.
In fact, the survey revealed that 36% of Americans are “somewhat” concerned, while a whopping 46% are “extremely” concerned about China’s military buildup. These figures have remained unchanged since the last poll conducted in November 2023.
Despite these concerns, only 27% of respondents believe that the U.S. has a clear strategy in place to address the challenge posed by China’s military growth.
China’s military spending ranks second globally, following closely behind the U.S. The country accounts for nearly half of the total defense expenditure in the Asia-Pacific region, as reported by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).
In recent years, China has significantly expanded both its conventional and nuclear forces, surpassing the U.S. in the number of land-based intercontinental ballistic missiles and naval vessels. This military buildup, coupled with China’s assertive actions in the East and South China seas and the Taiwan Strait, has raised concerns among U.S. allies like Japan and the Philippines.
According to the survey, three-quarters of respondents are worried about the possibility of China overtaking the U.S. as the leading global superpower. Concerns about Taiwan’s isolation, with Beijing claiming the island as its own and threatening forceful unification, also weigh heavily on respondents, with 58% expressing apprehension.
When it comes to actions in response to these concerns, 58% of respondents support an increase in the U.S.’s military presence near Taiwan, and 56% back bolstering arms sales to the self-governed island.
The survey also highlighted other areas of concern regarding China’s activities, including technology theft, advances in artificial intelligence, unfair trade practices, human rights violations within China, and the crackdown on freedoms in Hong Kong.
While China officially reported a $296 billion increase in its military budget last year, some analysts argue that Beijing may be significantly underreporting these numbers. The American Enterprise Institute estimated China’s defense spending to be over $710 billion in 2022, almost double the official figures and nearly on par with U.S. defense spending for that year.
Conducted from May 20-27 by Beacon Research and Shaw & Company, the survey included 1,257 eligible samples to reflect U.S. demographics. The estimated margin of error is approximately plus or minus 2.8%.
Despite the concerns, some experts suggest that these figures might not even capture the full extent of China’s military buildup. This raises more questions about the U.S.’s strategy towards managing the U.S.-China relationship in the face of China’s escalating military power.