ABSTRACT
A number of fundamental ambiguities and Inconsistencies have characterized official US policy toward China since 1979, when President Carter announced normalization of bilateral relations. Chief among these is the US attitude toward China’s military modernization. One factor contributing to the inconsistency in official US policy towards China is the absence of a solid quantitative and analytical baseline understanding of China’s military and technological capabilities. The chapter focuses on questions about the role of foreign technology in China’s military industries that can be addressed with some confidence. China has designed and produced a number of weapons with minimal foreign assistance. China tested its first atomic bomb in 1964 and its first megaton-range thermonuclear weapon in 1967, making the transition from fission to a fusion weapon. Before making conclusions concerning the history of technology transfer and current and future Chinese policy, the chapter examines the different means that China has used to acquire weapons since 1949.
