China Now A Global Military Threat To US

PAUL’S DEFENSE BRIEF (PDB) – China threat goes beyond the Pacific. China is developing space capabilities and next-generation fighters at a rapid rate, while also increasing its global footprint with military facilities and partnerships beyond the Indo-Pacific region.

U.S. general says, “In addition to the support base in Djibouti … the PLA continues to pursue military installations, and partnerships in a lot of places. … across Asia, in the Middle East, Africa, across the Pacific.”

“And we’re seeing the PLA partnering with others: strategic bomber patrols with Russia, naval patrols with Russia, as well as exercises — PLA, Russia and Iran.”

Meanwhile, China’s latest aircraft carrier showcases new fighter jet launch system. Only the U.S. has the same tech. The carrier has used its new electromagnetic catapult to successfully launch three types of aircraft.

Fort Drum in Philippines shows how states can push back on China’s maritime aggression in the South China Sea. Smaller countries like the Philippines, Vietnam, Malaysia, and Indonesia face increasing pressure from an assertive and militarily powerful China due to overlapping sovereignty claims and critical trade routes.

Located at the entrance of Manila Bay, the reinforced concrete battleship was equipped with 14-inch coastal cannons and designed to withstand heavy bombardment.

Although now conceptually outdated, Fort Drum’s resilience during World War II shows the potential of maritime outposts as operational deterrents against gray-zone activities and provides lessons for modern asymmetric defense in the South China Sea.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – Here’s a roundup of today’s other top defense stories ending the week from conservative national security expert PAUL CRESPO.

Not the President’s Daily Brief, but almost as good – PAUL’S DEFENSE BRIEFING – the PDB:    

NATIONAL SECURITY

China and Russia are conducting joint sub patrols — should U.S. worry?

HOMELAND SECURITY

USS Stockdale (DDG-106) is now operating in the Caribbean alongside seven other Navy surface warships as part of Trump’s homeland security efforts.

DEFENSE POLITICS

Navy memo provides guidance on how to report unprofessional social media use.

Defense Secretary Hegseth’s campaign to oust service members celebrating or mocking the assassination of Charlie Kirk online has already seen at least eight people suspended or placed under investigation.

West Point is banning opinions by professors in the classroom and some books and courses in a crackdown that violates the First Amendment, a law professor at the military school said in a lawsuit.

Air Force Secretary indicated that he expects the service to have a new chief of staff by the time current chief retires.

US POWER OVERSEAS

Taliban rejects President Trump’s bid to retake Bagram Air Base in Afghanistan, four years after Joe Biden’s chaotic withdrawal left the strategic military facility in the Taliban’s hands.

These are the approximate positions of the U.S. Navy’s deployed carrier strike groups and amphibious ready groups throughout the world as of September 22, 2025.

Marine Corps’ ‘Navy-Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System,’ its newest anti-ship weapons platform, better known as the NMESIS, is being forward deployed to the islands around Okinawa, Japan as part of a bilateral training exercise focused on island defense.

Orient Shield exercise in Japan adds Australian troops to U.S. and Japanese forces, as tensions with China rise.

RUSSIA THREAT

Just say no. Vladimir Putin offers Trump one-year extension of nuclear weapons treaty.

NATO will “not hesitate” to act and will issue a joint declaration soon on continuing Russian air incursions, Estonian Defense Minister said, and Estonia hopes it will include expanded air patrols and other defense measures under the recently announced NATO Eastern Sentry coordinated air defense campaign.

Copenhagen airport has reopened after briefly closing due to sightings of “unidentified drones”, even as another drone sighting has prompted Norway’s Oslo airport to shut its airspace.

In the first such attack, Ukraine has used drones to strike a pair of Russian Navy Be-12 flying boats, a twin-turboprop amphibious aircraft.

Hungary will not wean itself off Russian energy supplies, the country’s foreign minister said, despite the White House’s demand for Nato allies to stop buying Russian oil.

MIDDLE EAST THREATS

As Canada, the UK, Australia, Portugal, and France formally recognized Palestinian statehood, Palestinian reactions ranged from joy to dread that Israel would take this as a cue to target them more.

Benjamin Netanyahu was quick to denounce the recognition of a Palestinian state by many of Israel’s historic allies, but the prime minister may be struggling to decide how to turn rhetoric into a concrete response.

More ‘experts’ are calling Israel’s actions in Gaza genocide. But others note that’s a court’s call.

NORTH KOREAN THREAT

North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, said he had “good memories” of President Trump and saw no reason not to meet him again — as long as the U.S. stops insisting on dismantling his country’s nuclear arsenal.

SPACE THREATS

Space Force will soon have access to antennas owned by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to augment the capacity of its aging Satellite Control Network used to keep U.S. military satellites flying.

Space Force intends to buy commercial spacecraft and payloads for the follow-on to its flagship space domain awareness (SDA) constellation, under a new plan in which the service will own and operate the satellites.

NRO needs AI to manage more than 200 (and counting) satellites. The secretive spy agency is wrestling with an embarrassment of riches, and it needs AI to help.

Space Development Agency is reconsidering whether or not it will further develop position, navigation and timing (PNT) capabilities as part of its mega-constellation of satellites in low-Earth orbit.

NATO has put $728 million in common funding into a “capability program plan” to flesh out the 32-member alliance’s new(ish) Space Operations Center.

INTERNATIONAL SECURITY

Cyberattack that has caused major airport disruptions in the UK, Germany and Belgium was caused by ransomware, the EU says.

Thousands of left-wing protesters and strikers calling for solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza took to the streets in Italy, with some storming Milan’s central train station and clashing violently with police.

UK’s carrier force is close to achieving full operational capability as the Royal Navy’s second aircraft carrier has operated for months at sea as part of a Pacific deployment.

Royal Air Force Poseidon P-8 has been refueled in UK airspace for the first time, during Exercise Cobra Warrior 25-2.

UK’s nuclear deterrent program reached another milestone as steel was cut for HMS King George VI, the fourth and final Dreadnought-class nuke submarine.

Mass grave reveals scale of unlawful killings by Egyptian army in Sinai, say campaigners.

US MILITARY

Air Force’s first F-47 advanced stealth fighter being built by Boeing is expected to have its initial flight in 2028.

Air Force must focus its limited maintenance resources on key aircraft that are capable of surviving in a contested environment.

Air Force has launched a new initiative, dubbed the “Culture of Fitness,” which it hopes will motivate airmen and guardians to maintain high standards of physical fitness.

Lockheed Martin is pushing the Air Force to extend the scope of the upgrade for the F-22 Raptor fighter so that it will include the earlier Block 20 aircraft that the service currently uses for training.

END of PDB

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

READ NEXT: Trump Reveals Dramatic Foreign Policy Shift