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Top 20 world’s strongest militaries – personnel, aircraft, tanks and more; Here’s where India stands

<ul class="summary-list"><li>India is trying to modernize its military of 1.5 million people with lessons from Ukraine.</li><li>Until recent years, Russia supplied India with many weapons such as tanks and jets.</li></ul>As India boosts defense spending amid tensions with China and Pakistan, it is closely studying the Ukraine conflict for clues to the future of warfare and how to thwart its neighbors.Some lessons that Indian experts have already drawn: India needs lots of artillery, drones and cyberwarfare capabilities.Comparing Ukraine to India is tricky. Ukraine faces one major enemy — Russia — while India must contend with its old enemy Pakistan to the west, and an increasingly powerful China on its northwest frontier. The Russo-Ukraine war is mostly being fought over an Eastern European landscape of plains and forest, with a moderately good road network suitable for mechanized warfare. India must prepare for combat in a variety of terrain and climate conditions, including desert, jungle and some of the tallest mountains on Earth.India is also trying to modernize and standardize equipment for its armed forces, which comprise about 1.5 million personnel armed with a potpourri of equipment from several nations, as well as indigenous Indian gear. Until recent years, Russia supplied many weapons such as tanks and jets, but India is increasingly acquiring arms from Western nations, including American howitzers, French jet fighters, and Israeli drones.The Indian Army's artillery, for example, includes more than 3,000 weapons and multiple rocket launchers, including Russian, American, Swedish and South Korean designs. Indian observers believe Ukraine shows the importance of having plentiful and modern artillery. Artillery has arguably become the decisive combat arm in that war, with Russian firing <a target="_blank" href="https://www.politico.eu/article/ukrainian-army-suffers-from-artillery-shell-hunger/">10,000 shells per day</a> and advancing, while a munitions shortage has limited Ukraine to around 2,000 shells per day. This deluge of firepower has forced both armies to dig in, and turned the conflict into trench warfare."Looking at the demonstration of artillery fire in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war, two lessons are available to the Indian Army," wrote Amrita Jash, an assistant professor at the Manipal Academy of Higher Education, in a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.orfonline.org/public/uploads/upload/20240118114645.pdf">report</a> for the Observer Research Foundation, an Indian think tank. "First, that firepower can be a 'battle-winning factor,' and second, that the time between acquiring the target to shooting has drastically reduced: where it once took five to 10 minutes, it now takes only a minute or two."Indeed, India already planning to <a target="_blank" href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/army-draws-lessons-from-ukraine-war-revises-its-artillery-requirements/article67315823.ece">modernize</a> its artillery arsenal, including switching to 155-mm howitzers — the standard NATO caliber — and developing longer-range shells and rockets.<div type="image" title="Ukrainian servicemen fire an artillery in the direction of Siversk, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine on April 01, 2024." height="3000" width="4500" msid="109704222" hostid="261" sizebytes="757078"></div>The air war over Ukraine has proven to be a surprise, especially given Russian superiority in numbers of aircraft and technology. Anti-aircraft missiles have deterred the air forces of both sides from venturing into enemy airspace, with Russian aircraft limited to firing stand-off missiles at Ukrainian cities rather than providing air support for its ground troops. <a target="_blank">Drones</a> have become the stars and workhorses of the air war, with both sides deploying — and losing — drones in the hundreds of thousands.There are lessons here for Indian airpower, according to Arjun Subramaniam, a retired Indian Air Force air vice marshal who helped write the ORF report. India must prepare for "gaining control of the air in limited time and space conditions in a short, high-intensity limited conflict as well as in a longer, protracted conflict." The Air Force must also ensure that its plans are synchronized with ground and naval forces. India should also continue to focus on suppressing enemy air defenses, "particularly against an adversary that is more interested in denying rather than controlling the airspace."Not surprisingly, Subramaniam wants the Indian military to increase drone development and production. But he is also concerned about the possibility of a mass drone attack on India. "Of greater importance is the need to rapidly develop counter-drone capabilities that would be essential in responding to large-scale surprise attacks and retain effective second-strike capabilities," he wrote.<a target="_blank" href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/03/20/the-cyberwar-in-ukraine-is-as-crucial-as-the-battle-in-the-trenches">Cyberwarfare</a> has also emerged in Ukraine as a crucial tool in everything from hacking into military computers and critical infrastructure to purveying propaganda and deepfakes in global media. ORF researcher Shimona Mohan noted "the increasing role of largely civilian organizations like big tech in conflict situations and the deepening interplay of civil-military partnerships around dual-use technologies like AI."Mohan recommends that India invest in cyberwarfare, as other nations are doing. "However, if this is not feasible for socio-political or economic reasons, it should be a priority for countries to ensure that their strategic geopolitical allies are formidable tech powers—for instance in this war, Ukraine received much support from its more tech-savvy partners like the US and private tech companies."Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds an MA in political science from Rutgers Univ. Follow him on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.twitter.com/@mipeck1">Twitter</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/mipeck/">LinkedIn</a>.

India is drawing lessons from Ukraine to counter China's military might 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Baiju Bhatt, the cofounder of trading app Robinhood, has a new space startup.</li><li>Aetherflux aims to launch a constellation of satellites to transmit solar power to Earth using infrared lasers.</li></ul>When Baiju Bhatt co-founded the stock trading app <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/robinhood-collapse-what-happened-retail-investing-meme-stocks-future-finance-2022-2">Robinhood</a> in 2013 with his college best friend, Vlad Tenev, the aim was to "democratize finance for all."Robinhood's no-fee, gamified approach to investing made capital markets more accessible than ever before, leading to an IPO in 2021.After over a decade at the company, Bhatt stood down as Robinhood's chief creative officer in March to pursue what was described at the time as "other entrepreneurial interests."In October, Bhatt announced he was launching Aetherflux, a Silicon Valley-based space startup.Aetherflux aims to create a constellation of satellites in low Earth orbit (LEO) that will collect solar power and beam it down to receptors on Earth using infrared lasers.Just as <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/inside-starlink-spacex-satellite-internet-business-constellation-fleet-elon-musk-mars">Elon Musk's Starlink</a> constellation has transformed communications, Bhatt hopes Aetherflux will revolutionize energy, he told Business Insider in an interview.The receptors will be just 10 meters in diameter, Bhatt said, meaning they can be placed virtually anywhere and theoretically provide power to remote locations that would otherwise be too expensive or dangerous to reach."If we succeed, we unlock a renewable energy source for humanity that can be delivered virtually anywhere," he wrote in a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/allow-me-re-introduce-myself-baiju-bhatt-nu1ic/?trackingId=xecx1MNjQxGa6fapJvT2fA%3D%3D">LinkedIn post</a> announcing Aetherflux.If it works, far more solar power can be captured in orbit than through the atmosphere at ground level, and there would be no nighttime or weather disruptions to the power source. It would also free up land used for solar farms on Earth.Aetherflux plans to start by powering military operations in remote locations or remote mining operations, Bhatt said.<div type="image" title="A profile of Baiju Bhatt smiling in a black t-shirt in front of a beige background." height="3553" width="5324" msid="114432481" hostid="261" sizebytes="611312"></div>Bhatt hopes that a single receptor will one day be able to capture enough power for a small neighborhood of homes. He added that they'd need around 100 satellites to provide continuous power to one location.The idea of space-based solar power has existed for decades, but theories have generally rested on large constructions being sent into orbit and using microwaves to transmit energy.In January 2023, the California Institute of Technology launched a solar space-power demonstrator satellite into orbit for a yearlong mission to test out a range of potential approaches.Caltech's president, Thomas F. Rosenbaum, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.caltech.edu/about/news/space-solar-power-project-ends-first-in-space-mission-with-successes-and-lessons">said the project</a> had shown them that solar power beamed from space "is still a future prospect" but that it "should be an achievable future."Aetherflux wants to do things differently by using infrared lasers and a modular approach.The science has already been demonstrated; it's just going to be an engineering and economic feat to prove it can be done from space, Bhatt said.To begin with, Aetherflux plans to send a single satellite into orbit by the first quarter of 2026 to demonstrate that solar energy transmission is possible.<h2 id="f76e6857-d783-49d8-94bf-ab950b9759df">The right time to be in space</h2>Though the career jump from finance to the space industry may seem unusual, Bhatt said space has been his "lifelong calling."NASA was a part of Bhatt's childhood. His father moved to the US from India to pursue physics and got a job at NASA's Langley Research Center in the 1990s studying atmospheric sciences.With a bachelor's in physics and a master's in mathematics, both from Stanford, Bhatt thought he'd be a physicist too. So, Robinhood was a "bit of a detour," he told BI.He is still a board member but has stepped back from day-to-day operations.One lesson Bhatt said he learned from running the trading app was how powerful capitalism could be in accelerating innovation."If you can take a problem that's been stagnating and you can create a capitalist system around it where people can make money doing something, you'll see the rate of progress really speed up," he said.<div type="image" title="Baiju Bhatt (right) and Vlad Tenev, founders of the online brokerage Robinhood." height="4160" width="6240" msid="114432476" hostid="261" sizebytes="601100"></div>After meeting with people working on power for DARPA at the beginning of this year and seeing the <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-spacex-starship-launch-five-huge-deal-space-travel-2024-10">timeline Starship is on</a>, Bhatt decided that the best opportunities were now in space.Since 2009, the sum of private investments in space startups has soared from essentially nothing to $327.3 billion, according to the latest "<a target="_blank" href="https://spacecapital.docsend.com/view/9d69zpfz4ddms3ry">Space Investment Quarterly</a>" report published by venture capital and angel-investment firm Space Angels.The industry's value is expected to continue booming. <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.mckinsey.com/industries/aerospace-and-defense/our-insights/space-the-1-point-8-trillion-dollar-opportunity-for-global-economic-growth">McKinsey</a> estimates that the global space economy will be worth $1.8 trillion by 2035, accounting for inflation, up from $630 billion in 2023."It's hard to find something more exciting and impactful than space," said Matthew Weinzierl, a professor of the economics of space at Harvard Business School and coauthor of the upcoming book "Space to Grow.""This really is a new frontier, one where technological innovation can create new markets and solve real problems, often in ways we haven't thought of before," he said.Weinzierl said that in the past two decades, the US government has created pathways for commercial players, enabling market forces to take hold."Prices to orbit have dropped, launch availability has soared, and a wave of entrepreneurs are finding new ways to create value," he said.<div type="image" title="SpaceX's Super Heavy booster as it returned to its launch site, with the sun rising in the background." height="1031" width="1920" msid="114432482" hostid="261" sizebytes="52022"></div>With so many more commercially available products, space has <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/starship-launch-success-elon-musk-vision-cheap-space-travel-closer-2024-3#:~:text=%22With%20Starship%2C%20SpaceX%20is%20poised,in%20an%20email%20on%20Thursday.">never been cheaper</a>.Aetherflux is an example of how companies are using off-the-shelf solutions to speed up development. Its satellites are purchased readymade from satellite bus provider <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/palmer-luckey-anduril-apex-defense-tech-space-satellite-surveillance-2024-10">Apex</a>, the high-powered lasers it plans to use are commercially available, and it'll be using <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/spacex-launch">SpaceX</a> as a launch partner for its 2026 mission."The part that we're building is the actual optical design, the control systems, and the power transmission link, as well as the ground station," said Bhatt.<h2 id="5dda5318-030a-431a-91ff-f205b537a068">The future of Aetherflux</h2>When he spoke with BI, Bhatt had just moved into a lab facility in the Bay Area. With a team of 10 employees, he will begin iterating ground tests, developing the system design, and working with regulators.He's self-funding the project "completely," he told BI. As one of Robinhood's cofounders, Bhatt's net worth spiked after its IPO in 2021. He is worth around $1.7 billion, <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.forbes.com/profile/baiju-bhatt/">Forbes reports.</a>Although access to space has become more routine and affordable, Weinzierl said there is still a lot of uncertainty around the industry. Some of the ideas and businesses being developed today won't survive, but they'll be "the foundation that tomorrow's entrepreneurs will learn from and build on," he said.A self-proclaimed science nerd, Bhatt named his startup after a 19th-century theory about a pervasive medium called the aether, which physicists believed light traveled through."Einstein came along in 1905 and was basically like, nah, that stuff's all wrong. Light is the same in every reference frame," said Bhatt.So Aetherflux is named after a disproven scientific theory? Yes, Bhatt agreed with amusement. But he's "laser-focused" on the first mission and adamant that Aetherflux won't fall into the same bracket as its namesake."Space is hard," he admitted, "but we're committed to demonstrating this and making it happen."

Robinhood's cofounder has joined the rapidly growing commercial space race, and wants to beam solar power from satellites to earth

China has said that India made ‘unreasonable and unrealistic demands’ and the Indian Ministry of External affairs blamed the Chinese for not ‘being agreeable’ after the talks between the militaries of the two countries failed. This was the thirteenth round of talks between the two sides to ease the periodic escalation in conflict in the border areas. There were six places where the two sides disagree on where the border line should be. Four of them have been resolved. Two of the remaining flashpoints are Depsang and Hot Springs. “The Indian side emphasised such resolution of the remaining areas would facilitate progress in the bilateral relations. During the meeting, the Indian side therefore made constructive suggestions for resolving the remaining areas, but the Chinese side was not agreeable and also could not provide any forward-looking proposals. The meeting thus did not result in resolution of the remaining areas,” India said in a statement released on Monday, October 11. However, talks will continue, as per the statement from India. While the clashes between the two armies have reduced since June last year when soldiers from the two nuclear powers clashed in Ladakh, the tension continues. Both countries have 50,000 to 60,000 troops along the border areas, according to news agencies. While the talks have centred around the disputed border in Ladakh, Chinese troops recently attempted to cross the line in Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/enterprise/news/tcs-shares-price-down-despite-a-stronger-dollar-thats-good-for-future-profits/articleshow/86929360.cms">TCS shares plunge more than 6% despite a stronger dollar that’s good for future profits</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/aditya-birla-sun-life-amc-ipo-list-at-2-premium-only/articleshow/86929156.cms">Shares of Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC sees a tepid listing, opens at 2% premium</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/indian-government-assures-sufficient-fuel-supplies-to-power-plants-amid-blackout-concerns-in-delhi/articleshow/86913187.cms">Indian government assures sufficient fuel supplies to power plants amid blackout concerns in Delhi</a>

India and China militaries fail to agree on a border line at Depsang and Hot Springs

<ul class="summary-list"><li>India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in Russia to visit its president Vladimir Putin. </li><li>It's a visit that risks annoying India's ally the US. </li></ul>When India's prime minister arrived in Moscow on Tuesday, he greeted Russia's famously chilly president, Vladimir Putin, with an exuberant bear hug.It was a move likely <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/modi-putin-russia-india-relationship-not-worried-us-biden-mad-2024-7">to rile the US, </a>India's most important geopolitical ally, which has placed pressure on New Delhi to loosen its ties with Russia over Putin's invasion of Ukraine.But Prime Minister Narendra Modi's fear of China — a key Russian ally — means that he's willing to risk American anger to keep Putin close."New Delhi sees Moscow as an important buffer in their relationship due to Moscow's strong ties with Beijing," Sarang Shidore, an analyst at the Quincy Institute, told Business Insider."It is not in Russia's interest to have China and India at loggerheads, so it could, to a degree, act as a restraining agent."<h2 id="0ad4840d-1eb0-4f3e-a27c-3953a5a682f0">India ignores US pressure to cut Russia ties</h2>During the Cold War, the Soviet Union was among India's most important allies, with the Kremlin providing military support during India's clashes with Pakistan.They've remained close ever since, but the relationship is being tested anew in the fallout from the Ukraine war.The US has attempted to persuade India to take part <a target="_blank" href="https://apnews.com/article/russia-ukraine-united-nations-general-assembly-biden-narendra-modi-india-82c9273cf3143cf16e9da23c3dd48170">in its campaign to isolate</a> Russia over the Ukraine invasion — but with little success."Russia is one of India's oldest strategic partners, and New Delhi wants to maintain this relationship regardless of Russia's diplomatic isolation following the war in Ukraine," Rahul Bhatia, an analyst at the Eurasia Group, told BI.India has increased its purchase of Russian goods, including oil and fertilizer, at reduced prices after the US imposed sanctions on Russia.It continues to buy Russian armaments, with around <a target="_blank" href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/more-than-60-70-of-india-armed-forces-equipped-with-russian-origin-weapons-indian-envoy/articleshow/76903811.cms?from=mdr">70% of its weapons systems believed to be Russian</a>-made, and its military reliant on the Kremlin for spare parts and upgrades."Taking a hardline position against Russia could have both economic and security ramifications for India," said Richard Rossow, an analyst at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.<h2 id="a68bd311-605c-44db-97ac-44c2056c27c0">China's threat to India increases</h2>The threat from Chinese leader Xi Jinping is another key factor in Modi's determination to ignore US pressure and retain good ties with Putin.China's regional might is growing, and it's menacing India, Asia's other major economic power.In 2020, a long-simmering border dispute resulted in deadly clashes between Indian and Chinese troops. China ha<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-produces-vast-undersea-maps-submarine-warfare-report-says-2024-1">s bolstered its presence in the Indian Ocean</a>, and the two are jostling for influence in countries in the region.China has built stronger ties with Russia in the wake of the Ukraine invasion, hoping a Russian victory<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/xi-china-putin-russia-frenemies-limits-power-sphere-influence-2024-7"> will damage US power and enhance its own global</a> might. And it's this friendship Modi's seeking to drive a wedge between."There is a real chance of future conflicts, and India would prefer to avoid Russia exporting advanced military hardware to China," said Rossow.Some Indian analysts believe that China poses a greater threat to Russia than NATO in the long term and that India can exploit those differences."The Russia-China 'alliance' may be short-term in nature, and that historical conflicts between the two, such as over their long border and under-developed natural resources in Russia's east, will resurface and trigger renewed tensions," said Morrow.But for the time being, Russia's new "no limits"<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-economy-china-no-limits-partnership-yuan-bank-loans-sanctions-2024-2"> partnership has got Modi worried</a>, and he'll likely be hoping for a swift end to the Ukraine war. By maintaining good relations with Putin he's hoping he can contain the fallout."The war does not at all benefit its interests. The war also opens the door to legitimizing violations of territorial integrity, and endangers a principle that New Delhi has backed strongly," said Shidore.

Fear of China is behind India's exuberant display of friendship with Vladimir Putin 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Xi Jinping is in a struggle with China's military, purging senior commanders to reshape it.</li><li>He wants generals ready and willing to go to war, analysts told Business Insider.</li></ul>Xi Jinping is fighting with China's own military, seeking to purge commanders he sees as unwilling or unable to go to war, military analysts told Business Insider.The Chinese leader is "trying to gain control of the military, and I think that he is thinking that he needs officers who are prepared to actually fight," said Gordon Chang, a senior fellow at the Gatestone Institute and author of "China Is Going to War.""There is a sense that many of China's general officers don't want to fight," according to Chang. "And so we really have a force led by an officer corps that is ambivalent about going to war."Since taking power in 2012, Xi has <a target="_blank" href="https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/chinas-modernizing-military">overhauled China's military</a> by cutting deep into its personnel, seeking to improve military-civilian cooperation, and reshaping its structure, among other reforms.His efforts reached a crescendo on December 29, 2023, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.reuters.com/world/china/sweeping-chinese-military-purge-exposes-weakness-could-widen-2023-12-30/">when Xi dismissed nine senior officers in one stroke</a>.Since then, <a target="_blank" href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/China-s-military-purge-highlights-persistence-of-corruption">reports</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2024-01-06/us-intelligence-shows-flawed-china-missiles-led-xi-jinping-to-purge-military?leadSource=uverify%20wall">US intelligence</a> <a target="_blank" href="https://edition.cnn.com/2024/01/05/china/china-xi-military-purge-analysis-intl-hnk/index.html">have</a> <a target="_blank" href="https://www.reuters.com/world/china/sweeping-chinese-military-purge-exposes-weakness-could-widen-2023-12-30/">suggested</a> the decisions were to root out corruption — a motive <a target="_blank" href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-china-41670162">often cited</a> when Chinese officials are abruptly dismissed.However, to Chang, this theory misses the point."Because if that were the case, all of them would be sacked," he said.For him, Xi is likely purging officers who are reluctant to go to war.He cited Chinese Air Force General Liu Yazhou, who <a target="_blank" href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/10/20/not-all-in-chinas-military-view-taiwan-the-west-as-primary-threat">cautioned against an invasion of Taiwan</a> and received a suspended death sentence in February 2022, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.asianews.it/news-en/General-Liu-Yazhou,-an-admirer-of-Christianity,-sentenced-to-death-58238.html">per the AsiaNews agency</a>.BI also spoke to Joel Wuthnow, a senior research fellow in the Center for the Study of Chinese Military Affairs at the National Defense University in Washington, DC.He argued that rooting out corruption and readying China for war were aligned goals."The removals indicate that Xi should be concerned about the quality of people and equipment he has invested in over the last decade," he said.The nine senior commanders were involved in China's Rocket Force, which would have a crucial role in any military campaign, said Wuthnow."If that equipment malfunctions or can't be relied on, how confident can Xi and his colleagues be that the PLA will prevail?" Wuthnow asked.<h2>Xi is talking himself and China into a conflict</h2>China has been engaged in low-level hostilities with many of its near neighbors.There is <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-acknowledges-deaths-in-indian-border-clash-for-first-time-2021-2?r=US&amp;IR=T">India in the disputed Himalayas</a>, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-has-shifted-tactics-in-senkaku-islands-2014-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">Japan in the East China Sea</a>, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/decaying-ship-stands-as-philippines-defense-against-china-sea-claims-2023-11?r=US&amp;IR=T">the Philippines in the South China Sea</a>, and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/xi-biden-china-going-take-over-taiwan-war-report-apec-2023-12?r=US&amp;IR=T">Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory</a>.China's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/taiwan-threatens-to-forcefully-drive-away-chinese-fighters-2019-4?r=US&amp;IR=T">incursions</a> in <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/taiwan-38-chinese-planes-including-nuclear-capable-bombers-in-airspace-2021-10?r=US&amp;IR=T">Taiwan</a>'s <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-flights-around-taiwan-effort-to-improve-asw-capability-2021-4?r=US&amp;IR=T">air</a>-<a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/pentagon-operating-cold-war-era-bombers-against-chinas-growing-might-2020-9?r=US&amp;IR=T">defense</a> <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/china-pressure-on-taiwan-by-increasing-drone-flights-near-islands-2022-9?r=US&amp;IR=T">zone</a> over the last five years have prompted some <a target="_blank" href="https://breakingdefense.com/2022/10/navy-leader-cant-rule-out-chinese-invasion-of-taiwan-even-earlier-than-2027/">US Navy</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/national-security/us-air-force-general-predicts-war-china-2025-memo-rcna67967">Air Force</a> <a target="_blank" href="https://media.defense.gov/2023/Apr/24/2003205865/-1/-1/1/07-AMONSON%20&amp;%20EGLI_FEATURE%20IWD.PDF">officials</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.rand.org/pubs/commentary/2016/04/xis-purge-of-the-military-prepares-the-chinese-army.html">military</a> <a target="_blank" href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/world-news/china-appoints-admiral-dong-jun-new-defence-minister-but-opacity-reigns/articleshow/106478692.cms?from=mdr">observers</a> to <a target="_blank" href="https://breakingdefense.com/2023/10/in-chinas-military-purge-final-outcomes-remain-to-be-seen/">predict</a> that China would invade Taiwan in the next few years.However, to Chang, it is impossible to determine where the big flare-up could come from."I don't think that we can say, 'Oh, it's Taiwan or whatever'," he said, despite the island occupying the most attention in Western deabtes about China's military intentions.He noted that Xi has been ramping up warlike rhetoric.In his New Year's address, Xi said China "will surely be reunified, and all Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait should be bound by a common sense of purpose and share in the glory of the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation," according to the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.mfa.gov.cn/eng/zxxx_662805/202312/t20231231_11215608.html#:~:text=Going%20forward%2C%20we%20have%20full,sustained%20the%20momentum%20of%20recovery.">official translation</a> of his speech.Xi drove the message home in a recent face-to-face meeting with Biden, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/china/xi-warned-biden-summit-beijing-will-reunify-taiwan-china-rcna130087">NBC News reported.</a> The network said Xi told Biden at the APEC summit in San Francisco in November 2023 that China intended to take control of Taiwan.It continued previous interactions on those lines — in November 2021, Xi <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/xi-warns-biden-us-is-playing-with-fire-taiwan-2021-11?r=US&amp;IR=T">warned</a> Biden that his administration was "playing with fire" and urged Biden not to encourage Taiwanese independence, calling it "dangerous."This is significant, Chang said, because it creates "markers" for Xi's political enemies; with such statements, he could be "talking himself and China into a war," he said.Wuthnow, however, believes Xi is now more cautious following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, having seen it destabilize Vladimir Putin's domestic position and fearing the same could happen to him."Russia has paid an enormous price for its misadventure, and China would as well. Moreover, a failed invasion would be worse for Xi politically than not trying at all," he said.<h2>A Chinese invasion could drag the US into WWIII</h2>All the conditions are in place for a third world war, Chang said: There is widespread conflict — war in Ukraine, insurgencies in Africa, Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza, and military activity in the Red Sea, Persian Gulf, and Indian Ocean."Remember, in the 1930s, there were separate wars that merged into what we now call World War II," he said."The same dynamics exist today, and it's entirely possible, and some people can even argue that it's probable that these will merge into a global conflict," Chang said.A Chinese invasion in East Asia would drag Western countries into something larger, he predicted."I think that Xi Jinping is taking two pages out of Mao's Peasant Revolution playbook.""One of them was to encircle the cities from the countryside. And in this, I think that Xi Jinping views Ukraine, north Africa, Israel as the countryside, and the United States as the city," he said.

Xi Jinping is in a battle with China's own military, and the outcome could drag the US into WWIII

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The US reversed its decline in power in <keyword id="11902482" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="asia" source="Orion">Asia</keyword> this year, while <keyword id="11892748" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="china" source="Orion">China</keyword>'s rise appeared to falter.</li><li>The US was an exception, as other countries struggled to respond to COVID-19, according to Australia's Lowy Institute.</li></ul>The US reversed its decline in power in Asia this year, while China's rise appeared to falter, but neither course is assured, and both face domestic issues that may hinder their influence, according to the Lowy Institute's 2021 <a href="https://power.lowyinstitute.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Asia Power Index</a>.The index, published annually by the Australian think tank since 2018, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/balance-of-power-shifting-in-asia-china-gaining-on-us-2020-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tracks the distribution of power in Asia</a> by assessing countries on eight thematic measures that account for resources and influence. It <a href="https://power.lowyinstitute.org/downloads/lowy-institute-2021-asia-power-index-key-findings-report.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">shows</a> the comprehensive power of almost all Asian countries shrinking in 2021.The US defied that trend, registering an overall increase for the first time — though its 0.6-point gain comes after a three-point loss in 2020. In contrast, China's comprehensive power declined for the first time.Those shifts show that China's primacy in the region isn't assured and that the US isn't locked into steady decline, according to Hervé Lemahieu, director of research at the Lowy Institute and the index's lead researcher.The <a href="https://www.axios.com/pandemic-timeline-two-year-anniversary-216f74e0-0512-4d4f-8227-717614775dbb.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ongoing pandemic</a> looms over the region, but it isn't the sole reason for those changes. "It's a combination of political and structural factors," Lemahieu told Insider after the index's release this month.<div type="image" title="China covid vaccine" height="2667" width="4000" msid="88266097" hostid="261"></div>The US has had a stronger-than-expected economic recovery, resulting from its response to the pandemic's worst effects and its infrastructure spending. Its improved economic prospects through the end of the decade would be noteworthy "with or without the pandemic," Lemahieu said.The US now tops six of the index's eight measures, an improvement attributed to President Joe Biden's pandemic response, economic initiatives, and regional engagement, especially through vaccine diplomacy. Earlier this year, experts judged Biden the region's most effective leader, and that standing was not significantly tarnished by the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-air-force-planes-crews-recovering-after-afghanistan-evacuation-2021-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Afghanistan withdrawal</a> or <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/australia-aukus-nuclear-powered-subs-in-pacific-amid-china-tensions-2021-11" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AUKUS backlash</a>.China and the US remain the only superpowers in the region, and the gap between them and the nearest middle powers widened this year, according to the index, even as China slipped in four of the index's measures of power.China's economy rebounded this year but other issues will affect its trajectory, including a workforce set to contract by 20% over the next 30 years, a pivot to domestic consumption as the driver of growth, and a corporate <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/business-58182658" target="_blank" rel="noopener">crackdown</a>.A broader inward turn also undercut China's relative advantages. Strict border controls affected China's cultural influence, and leader Xi Jinping's failure to leave the country in the past two years eroded its diplomatic influence.Those issues, as well as increasing authoritarianism, will affect China's future growth and influence abroad, Lemahieu said."All these things basically combined to slow China's economic growth rate," Lemahieu said, adding that China's 8% annual growth rates a decade ago will likely settle to 4% by the end of this decade."China still is likely to overtake the US by the end of this decade at market exchange rates. It's just that the speed at which it's growing is starting to level out a bit," Lemahieu said.<h2>'What you can't predict'</h2><div type="image" title="Chinese Y-20 airlifter engines" height="1156" width="2000" msid="88266099" hostid="261"></div>The US and China are moving in opposite directions in terms of military power.Beijing's growing military strength is driven by defense spending that is now 50% larger than that of India, Japan, Taiwan, and all 10 ASEAN countries combined. China's military <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-flights-around-taiwan-effort-to-improve-asw-capability-2021-4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">is increasingly active</a> on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-indian-soldiers-yudh-abhyas-exercise-alaska-amid-china-tension-2021-12" target="_blank" rel="noopener">its periphery</a> and has added advanced weaponry and expanded nuclear forces.The US remains far ahead in terms of military capability, but its military primacy in the region is in steady relative decline. It has leveraged its regional networks to partially offset that decline, as shown by AUKUS and the security elements of the Quad partnership.A similar approach to economic engagement could help arrest <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/despite-china-tensions-countries-dont-see-better-offer-from-us-2021-9" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the US's decline in that field</a>, Lemahieu said. China is roughly even with the US in terms of economic capability but far ahead in its regional economic relationships, whereas the index <a href="https://power.lowyinstitute.org/downloads/lowy-institute-2021-asia-power-index-key-findings-report.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">finds</a> the US facing "growing irrelevance in the political economy of Asia.""If America plays its cards right, it has the potential to remain the dominant superpower well into this century," Lemahieu told Insider. "The extent to which it remains influential in Asia will largely depend on whether it can arrest that decline in its economic influence."The Biden administration has yet to lay out its economic approach to the region. Officials have promised "<a href="https://www.lowyinstitute.org/publications/conversation-white-house-indo-pacific-coordinator-kurt-campbell" target="_blank" rel="noopener">quick action</a>" on that issue, but some in the region expect that effort to be hampered by anti-trade sentiment in the US.<div type="image" title="Trump ASEAN line" height="1312" width="1950" msid="88266100" hostid="261"></div>A domestic issue of greater concern may be the health of US democracy."You ask most US allies and partners, and they will tell you that [they are] very reassured by the Biden administration but also very aware that none of these issues surrounding US domestic polarization has really been effectively quelled," Lemahieu said.Former President <keyword id="11914386" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="donald-trump" source="Orion">Donald Trump</keyword>'s baseless claims about the 2020 election, attempts to disrupt the transfer of power, and Republicans' <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2020/11/09/republicans-free-fair-elections-435488" target="_blank" rel="noopener">embrace</a> of those falsehoods have prompted increasing concern about the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/11/us/politics/trust-in-elections-trump-democracy.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">integrity</a> of future elections.Trump's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/caught-between-trump-and-china-australia-is-reevaluating-its-position-2020-6" target="_blank" rel="noopener">disregard for alliances and partnerships</a> alienated many in Asia, and his possible return to power, or the victory of another candidate who shares his views, worries countries in the region."What you can't predict is the extent to which US democratic institutions become destabilized [or] the extent to which the US can no longer really be a reliable or constant foreign-policy actor," Lemahieu said. "Allies and partners will take what they can get, and they won't mention it out loud, but it's something they're thinking about."

The US reversed its declining power in Asia in 2021, but a stronger China isn't its only problem

<ul class="summary-list"><li>"We will not stop at that (three carriers)," India's defense minister recently said.</li><li>Five or six aircraft carriers would give India a force equal to that of China.</li></ul>India may build a fleet of five to six new aircraft carriers, according to a comment from the country's defense minister that's been widely debated about whether that's a good strategy or if the offhand remark was even serious.The Indian Navy operates two small aircraft carriers. Four more would give India a carrier force on par with China's growing one. And it would not be much smaller — at least in number of vessels — than the US Navy's 11 supercarriers.But whether this ambitious shipbuilding project will happen is another matter. Many Indian experts are convinced it's a bad idea.Exactly what the Indian government is thinking isn't clear. During an <a target="_blank" href="https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/india/work-on-third-aircraft-carrier-to-start-soon-more-to-follow-says-rajnath-621319">interview</a> with an Indian newspaper regarding plans to construct a third aircraft carrier, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said India would build yet more. "We will not stop at that (three carriers)," he said. "We will make five, six more."Some Indian experts aren't sure the government is even serious about this. The defense minister "seemingly made an off-the-cuff remark that was picked up by the media," Abhijit Singh, a former Indian naval officer and now an analyst at the Observer Research Foundation think tank in New Delhi, told Business Insider. "He was only trying to dispel suggestions that the government is resistant to a proposal for a third aircraft carrier."Nonetheless, there are compelling reasons why India might want a large carrier fleet. India's rival China now has three carriers, including the newly launched 80,000-ton <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chinas-newest-aircraft-carrier-seen-with-aircraft-mock-ups-images-2024-4">Fujian</a>, and may aim for a fleet of six carriers by 2035. China — which <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/chinese-troops-beat-indian-soldiers-batons-wrapped-in-barbed-wire-2020-6">fought</a> border clashes with India in the <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/after-himalayan-clash-india-prepares-navy-to-take-on-china-2021-6">Himalayas</a> in 2020 — is beginning to project its power into the <a target="_blank" href="https://warontherocks.com/2024/05/its-still-the-indian-ocean-parsing-sino-indian-naval-competition-where-it-counts/">Indian Ocean</a>, which is India's maritime backyard."It is expected that the Chinese will permanently station one of its CBGs [carrier battle groups] in the Indian Ocean, supported by its various bases in Djibouti (on the western edge of the Indian Ocean), <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/rapid-construction-at-cambodia-base-amid-concern-about-china-presence-2021-6">Ream in Cambodia</a> (on the eastern edge of the Indian Ocean), and Gwadar in Pakistan, Hambantota in Sri Lanka, and Kyaukpyu in Myanmar," warned India's <a target="_blank" href="https://swarajyamag.com/defence/countering-chinas-expansion-india-to-build-five-to-six-more-aircraft-carriers-in-future-defence-minister-rajnath-singh">Swarajya</a> magazine.Interestingly, Swarajya magazine also suggested that carriers could project Indian power into the South China Sea, which is China's maritime backyard. Indian warships have periodically sailed in those waters.<div type="image" title="A view from the sloped bow of the INS Vikrant that carries MiG-29K fighter jets." height="1333" width="2000" msid="110619274" hostid="261" sizebytes="239670"></div>India has two carriers of around 45,000 tons each: the Vikramaditya (a refurbished former Soviet vessel) and the Vikrant, India's first home-built carrier. Both are <a target="_blank" href="https://interestingengineering.com/lists/ski-jumps-catapults-aircraft-carrier">ski-jump</a> designs that launch the troubled Soviet-era MiG-29K under its own power because it lacks catapults. Despite early speculation that the proposed third carrier would be a 65,000-ton ski-jump design similar to Britain's <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/uks-flagship-carrier-embarrassing-setback-pulls-out-big-nato-exercise-2024-2">Queen Elizabeth-class</a>, the Indian government appears to be opting for a <a target="_blank" href="https://www.newsweek.com/india-third-aircraft-carrier-china-indian-pacific-ocean-region-1847935">45,000-ton vessel</a> similar to the Vikrant, and carrying French-made <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/frances-rafale-fighter-jet-popular-dassault-cant-keep-up-2024-3">Rafale fighters</a>.This means that Indian carriers would continue to be less than half the size of the 100,000-ton, nuclear-powered US Nimitz- and Ford-class behemoths, which are equipped with steam or electromagnetic catapults that can launch heavier planes, especially airborne early warning aircraft; China's Fujian also uses an advanced electromagnetic catapult. They would also be less expensive, with the third Indian carrier estimated at around $5 billion, compared to $13 billion for a Ford-class carrier.In fact, some Indian naval experts would prefer a larger carrier equipped with catapults. "Small aircraft carriers, like those India possesses, are increasingly vulnerable and unlikely to play a significant role in future conflicts," Singh, the defense analyst, said. "Unfortunately, the country lacks the funding for a large carrier and can only afford another small flattop. This presents a predicament with no easy solutions."On the other hand, there is a reason why America builds enormously expensive aircraft carriers. Its global interests arguably require the ability to dispatch and maintain floating airfields around the world, often in distant places where airbases aren't available. For India and China, which have a more regional focus, smaller vessels may suffice.For India, carriers are more than floating airfields. They are symbols of national power. Thus regardless of their military utility against a powerful adversary like China, carriers would enable India support other operations, such as humanitarian, peacekeeping and anti-piracy missions."The consensus among India's maritime observers is that the aircraft carrier remains central to maritime strategy, not just for its ability to dominate the littoral but also for its crucial peacetime role," said Abhijit Singh. "In less-than-war situations, the flattop can shift the psychological balance in ways no other naval platform can. Despite its drawbacks, the aircraft carrier's aura and impact in peacetime operations are unmatched."Michael Peck is a defense writer whose work has appeared in Forbes, Defense News, Foreign Policy magazine, and other publications. He holds an MA in political science from Rutgers Univ. Follow him on <a target="_blank" href="https://www.twitter.com/@mipeck1">Twitter</a> and <a target="_blank" href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/mipeck/">LinkedIn</a>.

A bizarre comment stirred speculation India may try to match China's carrier fleet 

<ul class="summary-list"><li>The US, UK, and Australia recently announced a pact meant to boost their militaries' ties and capabilities.</li><li>A central part of the pact is the US and UK's pledge to help Australia acquire nuclear-powered subs.</li></ul>In September, Australia, the UK, and the US announced a trilateral security pact aimed at strengthening their defense ties. Their leaders <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/biden-new-security-partnership-auukus-uk-australia-counter-china-technology-2021-9" target="_top">stressed that it wasn't aimed at another country</a>, but it is widely viewed as a means to counter China.The central component of that pact is the sharing of high-end technology and cooperation on weapon development and procurement. What stood out, though, was the US and UK's pledge to help Australia acquire eight nuclear-powered submarines.The move is historic. The US has only shared nuclear-propulsion technology once - with the UK in 1958. It will also put Australia in a very exclusive military club.Only six other countries operate nuclear-powered subs. The US, UK, France, India, Russia, and China have built up their fleets for decades, and they now include a number of classes with distinct missions.<h2>Nuclear-powered ballistic-missile subs</h2><div type="image" title="Sailors on bridge of Navy submarine USS Alabama" height="1419" width="2000" msid="87518385" hostid="261"></div>The largest and most feared submarines today are nuclear-powered ballistic-missile subs, classified as SSBNs.They can sail deeper and faster than conventionally powered subs. They also carry large nuclear payloads and remain submerged for months - making them effective second-strike weapons.The US, UK, France, and India each operate a single class of SSBN.The US Navy's 14 <a href="https://submarinesuppliers.org/programs/ssbn/ohio-class-ssbn/" target="_top">Ohio-class</a> SSBNs can carry 24 submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), while the Royal Navy's four <a href="https://www.naval-technology.com/projects/vanguard-submarine/" target="_top">Vanguard-class</a> can carry 16.Both navies use the <a href="https://www.navy.mil/Resources/Fact-Files/Display-FactFiles/Article/2169285/trident-ii-d5-missile/" target="_top">Trident II</a> SLBM. Each Trident II has a range of 4,600 miles and can carry multiple independently targetable reentry vehicles (MIRVs), which substantially increase the number of warheads on each missile.The French navy's four <a href="https://www.naval-technology.com/projects/triomphant/" target="_top">Triomphant-class</a> boats carry 16 <a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/m45/" target="_top">M45</a> or <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/04/video-france-successfully-tests-an-m51-ballistic-missile/" target="_top">M51</a> SLBMs, which can carry up to six and 10 MIRVs, respectively. The M45's range is about 3,700 miles and the M51's is 4,900 miles.<div type="image" title="Russia Borei ballistic missile submarine Yury Dolgoruky" height="1333" width="2000" msid="87518386" hostid="261"></div>India's <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/05/5-years-of-submarine-secrecy-indias-unique-arihant-class-is-still-in-hiding/#prettyPhoto" target="_top">Arihant-class</a> has four silos capable of launching either 12 <a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/sagarika-shaurya/" target="_top">K-15</a> short-range SLBMs or eight medium-range <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/india-successfully-test-fires-3500-km-k-4-slbm/article30601739.ece" target="_top">K-4</a> SLBMs. The K-15 has a range of 460 miles, while the K-4 has a range of 2,170 miles.India plans to have a total of four Arihant SSBNs by 2030. One is in service, and the second is set for commissioning next year.China's four <a href="http://www.military-today.com/navy/jin_class.htm" target="_top">Type 094-class</a> boats can carry 12 <a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/jl-2/" target="_top">JL-2</a> SLBMs. Each of those missiles can carry three to eight MIRVs and are believed to have a range between 4,500 to 5,500 miles. Two more Type 094s are under construction, the US Defense Department said in 2020. China also has an older <a href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/chinas-first-nuclear-powered-boomer-submarine-was-total-19054?nopaging=1" target="_top">Type 092</a> SSBN, though it is likely only used for testing.Russia's navy has the most diverse SSBN fleet: one <a href="https://www.naval-technology.com/projects/ssbn-typhoon-class/" target="_top">Typhoon-class</a>, one <a href="http://www.military-today.com/navy/delta_iii_class.htm" target="_top">Delta III-class</a>, six <a href="http://www.military-today.com/navy/delta_iv_class.htm" target="_top">Delta IVs</a>, and four of the new <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-navy-replacing-oldest-soviet-ballistic-missile-submarines-2021-6" target="_top">Borei-class</a>.Each Borei-class sub can fire 16 <a href="https://missilethreat.csis.org/missile/ss-n-32-bulava/" target="_top">RSM-56 Bulava</a> SLBMs, which can carry up to 10 MIRVS and are believed to have a roughly 5,000-mile range. Russia plans to have 10 Boreis in service by the end of the decade.<h2>Nuclear-powered attack and cruise-missile subs</h2><div type="image" title="Navy submarine Ohio SSGN conversion" height="745" width="1144" msid="87518387" hostid="261"></div>Nuclear-powered attack and cruise-missile submarines - designated SSN and SSGN, respectively - can't carry ballistic missiles, but they are equally important.SSNs can hunt and kill enemy ships and submarines, and both types can attack targets deep inland with cruise missiles.The US Navy <a href="https://www.navy.mil/Resources/Fact-Files/Display-FactFiles/Article/2169558/attack-submarines-ssn/" target="_top">operates</a> three types of SSN: the Los Angeles, Seawolf, and Virginia classes.The Los Angeles class is the oldest, and 28 are still active. They have four torpedo tubes, and later versions are fitted with 12 vertical launch systems (VLS) for cruise missiles.The Seawolf class was developed at the end of the Cold War and is designed for sensitive missions. It is also heavily armed, carrying up to 50 torpedoes or cruise missiles it can fire from its eight torpedo tubes.The Virginia class is the newest, and 19 are now active. They have four torpedo tubes and 12 VLS tubes for 37 torpedo-sized weapons. Future <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/07/us-navys-virginia-class-submarines-get-more-tomahawk-missiles/#prettyPhoto" target="_top">Blo</a><a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/07/us-navys-virginia-class-submarines-get-more-tomahawk-missiles/#prettyPhoto" target="_top">c</a><a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/07/us-navys-virginia-class-submarines-get-more-tomahawk-missiles/#prettyPhoto" target="_top">k V </a><a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2021/07/us-navys-virginia-class-submarines-get-more-tomahawk-missiles/#prettyPhoto" target="_top">Virginias</a> will have even more VLS tubes, increasing their armament to 65 torpedo-sized weapons.Four of the US Navy's Ohio-class SSBNs were <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/12/u-s-navys-ohio-class-submarine-to-get-new-hypersonic-weapons/#prettyPhoto" target="_top">converted into SSGNs</a> in the 2000s. Each can now carry as many as 154 cruise missiles.<div type="image" title="British Royal Navy submarine HMS Triumph" height="1500" width="2000" msid="87518388" hostid="261"></div>The Royal Navy's two <a href="http://www.hisutton.com/Royal-Navy-Trafalgar-Class-Submarine.html" target="_top">Trafalgar-class</a> attack subs have five torpedo tubes, while newer <a href="https://www.naval-technology.com/projects/astute/" target="_top">Astute-class</a> boats, of which there are four, have six tubes. Both can fire torpedoes and cruise missiles and can carry 30 and 38 torpedo-size weapons, respectively.France's five <a href="https://www.naval-technology.com/projects/rubis/" target="_top">Rubis-class</a> and single <a href="http://www.hisutton.com/Suffren-Barracuda-Class-Submarine.html" target="_top">Suffren-class</a> SSNs also rely on their torpedo tubes - four and eight of them, respectively - to launch torpedoes and missiles.China's six <a href="https://www.navalnews.com/naval-news/2020/11/the-chinese-navys-most-powerful-attack-submarine-the-type-093a/#prettyPhoto" target="_top">Type 093-class</a> SSNs each have six tubes capable of firing torpedoes and cruise missiles. They are regarded as China's most powerful attack submarines, and some may now be equipped with VLS tubes.Like its SSBN fleet, Russia's SSN and SSGN fleet is large and diverse, comprising two <a href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/best-submarine-you-never-heard-meet-russias-deadly-sierra-class-submarine-46587" target="_top">Sierra-class</a>, three <a href="http://www.military-today.com/navy/victor_iii_class.htm" target="_top">Victor III-class</a>, and 10 <a href="https://nationalinterest.org/blog/reboot/why-russia%E2%80%99s-akula-class-submarine-scares-us-navy-181230" target="_top">Akula-class</a> SSNs, as well as eight <a href="http://www.hisutton.com/Update-on-Russian-Navy-Pr949AM-Modernized-OSCAR-II.html" target="_top">Oscar II-class</a> and two <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/russia-northern-fleet-new-class-of-subs-worry-us-navy-2021-6" target="_top">Yasen-class</a> SSGNs.In 2019, India <a href="https://www.indiatoday.in/india-today-insight/story/why-india-is-leasing-a-second-nuclear-powered-attack-submarine-from-russia-1849277-2021-09-04" target="_top">agreed</a> to lease one of Russia's Akula-class SSNs for $3 billion. It will be the third Russian SSN leased by India and is expected to be delivered by 2026.<h2>Australia's nuclear sub</h2><div type="image" title="Royal Australian Navy submarine HMAS Collins" height="1333" width="2000" msid="87518389" hostid="261"></div>Australia's future nuclear-powered subs won't be SSBNs, but not much else is known about them.Australia may select one of the existing American or British designs - most likely of the Virginia class or the Astute class. Adopting an existing design would allow construction to begin relatively soon.Australia could also wait for the British <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/hisutton/2019/12/08/new-intelligence-on-the-secretive-next-generation-british-attack-submarine-ssnr/?sh=5e83a890107c" target="_top">SSN(R)</a> or American <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/us-navy-plans-to-make-future-attack-submarine-apex-predator-2021-10" target="_top">SSN(X)</a> programs to develop and adopt one of those designs, though it will take more than a decade for either of them to hit the water.Australia may also pursue a totally new, domestically developed design with only technical help from the British and Americans.Canberra has made clear that it wants most of its future submarines to be built in Australia. This was <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/lost-the-plot-how-an-obsession-with-local-jobs-blew-out-australia-s-90-billion-submarine-program-20210913-p58r34.html" target="_top">one reason</a> Australia's sub deal with France fell through.But it's not known how much of the work the US and UK will cede to Australia, nor is it known if Australia can develop and build such a complicated system domestically. Australia's six <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/oct/15/nuclear-submarines-uncertain-delivery-date-means-ageing-collins-class-could-be-in-use-until-2050" target="_top">Collins-class</a> submarines were designed in Sweden, and some were partially built there.Regardless of how they are built, the new subs will take a decade or longer. The admiral leading the country's <keyword id="12145963" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="nuclear-powered-submarine" source="Orion">nuclear-powered submarine</keyword> task force <a href="https://twitter.com/stephendziedzic/status/1453136986399645702" target="_top">told</a> lawmakers in October that he wants "at least one boat" in the water by 2040.

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