“The Geostrategic and Technological Landscape: The resurgence of great power competition combined with the unprecedented pace of technological disruption require the United States to reimagine how we deter and, if necessary, fight and prevail in a future conflict. Central to this challenge is ensuring the U.S. military retains its operational and technological edge over a revanchist Russia and particularly a rising China.
“Since the end of the Cold War, the United States has enjoyed a period of unrivaled military and technological superiority, but we can no longer afford to rest on our laurels. America’s military advantage is rapidly eroding in light of China’s and, to a lesser extent, Russia’s military modernization efforts. In fact, if we stay the current course, a rising China and revisionist Russia will likely achieve overmatch in a number of key capability areas, calling into question our ability to credibly deter aggression, defend our interests, allies and partners, and prevail in any future conflict at acceptable levels of cost and risk…”