While the US is increasingly concerned about China’s buildup in the South China Sea, military-to-military relations are improving and the countries continue to exercise together. This month, US Army Pacific is participating in a disaster response exercise in China. This bilateral exercise shows an increase in cooperation, following other events such as a visit earlier this year by top Chinese officials to American bases such as JB Lewis-McChord, Wash., said Adm. Harry Harris, commander of US Pacific Command. China this year also participated in the Rim of the Pacific exercise, bringing its ships to the Pacific’s largest maritime exercise. However, China also has built seven bases on man-made islands in the South China Sea and pushed to exert its influence on international shipping and overflight in the area. China, this week, said its Liaoning aircraft carrier is operational, and the J-20 stealth fighter jet made its first public appearance earlier this month. These events show that China is using its “economic strength to build a more modern military,” Harris said. (See also: Mischief in the South China Sea from the October issue of Air Force Magazine.)
Chief of Space Operations Gen. B. Chance Saltzman said reforms underway to the Space Force’s deployment and training model are the “most drastic change accompanying the establishment of the Space Force” in a note distributed to Guardians on April 19. “It fundamentally alters how we prepare for operations,” Saltzman wrote…