The Pentagon’s annual report on China’s military and security developments, released on December 23, offers a revealing glimpse into the contradictions at the heart of contemporary US strategic thinking toward China. On the surface, the document appears to pull in two opposing directions. On one hand, it reiterates a familiar narrative that portrays China’s military modernization as a “historic buildup” and a growing threat to US security, even extending to claims about an “increasingly vulnerable” American homeland. On the other hand, the same report underscores that under President Donald Trump’s leadership, US–China relations are “stronger than they have been in many years” and signals an intention to expand military-to-military communication with the People’s Liberation Army (PLA). This duality is not accidental; rather, it reflects the complex, often uneasy reality of current US–China relations and the deep tensions between perception, policy, and strategic necessity.

For years, hyping the so-called “Chinese military threat” has become an annual routine for the Pentagon. Each report tends to follow a similar template: highlighting advances in Chinese capabilities, framing them within worst-case scenarios, and using them to justify continued or expanded US military presence in the Asia-Pacific region. The latest report, despite being the first issued under a new US administration, does not break from this pattern. It continues to apply double standards, treating extensive US military deployments, alliances, and forward bases across the Asia-Pacific as natural and stabilizing, while depicting China’s own defense development as inherently destabilizing and threatening.

From China’s perspective, this framing ignores a basic reality of international relations: every sovereign state has the legitimate right to develop the means necessary to protect its security, territorial integrity, and national interests. China is home to more than 1.4 billion people, has vast land borders and extensive maritime interests, and has a long historical memory shaped by invasion, colonial aggression, and prolonged conflict. Against this backdrop, strengthening national defense and modernizing the military are not acts of aggression, but rational and defensive measures aimed at preventing a repeat of past humiliations and ensuring long-term stability.

Critically, China’s military expenditure........

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