CHEMICAL AND BIOLOGICAL RESEARCH
- The PRC continues to engage in biological activities with dual-use applications, which raise concerns regarding its compliance with the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC). This includes studies at PRC military medical institutions on potent toxins with dual-use applications.
- The PRC likely possesses capabilities relevant to chemical and biological warfare that pose a threat to U.S., Allied, and partner forces, military operations, and civilian populations.
- The United States cannot certify that the PRC has met its obligations under the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) due to concerns regarding the PRC's research on pharmaceutical-based agents (PBAs) and toxins with potential dual-use applications.
OPERATIONAL STRUCTURE AND ACTIVITIES ON CHINA'S PERIPHERY
- The PRC continues to refine military reforms associated with the establishment of the Eastern, Southern, Western, Northern, and Central Theater Commands, which are organized based on the PRC's perception of peripheral threats.
- Under the direction of the CMC, each Theater Command has operational authority over the PLA conventional forces within the theater.
- In August 2022, the PLA carried out large-scale joint military exercises aimed at pressuring Taiwan. The exercises included firing ballistic missiles over Taiwan's main island, over a dozen naval patrols, and hundreds of flights into Taiwan's claimed ADIZ.
DEVELOPMENTS IN THE SECURITY SITUATION IN THE SCS
- The PRC states that international military presence within the SCS is a challenge to its sovereignty.
- Throughout 2022, the PRC deployed PLAN, CCG, and civilian ships to maintain a presence in disputed areas, such as near Scarborough Reef and Thitu Island, as well as in response to oil and gas exploration operations by rival claimants within the PRC's claimed "nine-dash line."
- During 2022, the PRC conducted multiple coercive actions against the Philippines in the SCS, including cutting the tow line of a Philippine Navy vessel, executing dangerous maneuvers in close proximity to Philippine vessels; and reportedly reclaiming several unoccupied land features in the SCS, which the Philippines noted contravenes the Declaration of Conduct on the South China Sea's undertaking on self-restraint and the 2016 Arbitral Award.
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OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE
Annual Report to Congress: Military and Security Developments Involving the People's Republic of China
