China challenging US military technological edge

Pentagon officials said on Tuesday the US military’s technological superiority is increasingly threatened by China, and efforts to maintain an edge are complicated by defense budget cuts, Reuters reported. Frank Kendall, the deputy undersecretary of defense for acquisition and technology, told lawmakers the Pentagon’s ability to respond by developing new technologies was “severely limited by the current budget situation,” with the department facing hundreds of billions in cuts to projected spending over the next decade. The base US defense budget will drop below US$500 billion in 2014 under a deal finalized in January, while China’s grew to US$119 billion last year after another double-digit jump.