¡°I have seen the Liberation Army in my own eyes, and we have underestimated China¡¯s military and technological power.¡±

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"We can't ignore China's strength." Recently, Burns, the former US ambassador to China, "warned" at an event held by the non-profit organization "World Boston" that China's technological, military and economic strength is far stronger than the United States imagined, and the United States can't continue to underestimate China.

According to Burns, China¡¯s leadership has a strategic vision, which makes it difficult for the United States to compete with China on this level of strategic layout.He also dismissed questions about the ¡°liberation army has not fought war for more than 40 years,¡± saying it underestimates China¡¯s military and technological strength.

Burns attended the event.

GBH, an American public media organization, released a video of Burns attending the event on 17th. Regarding some people's view that "China has reached its peak," Burns said: "We underestimate China's strength in the world."

He said that China does face some challenges, but China's strength cannot be ignored.

He mentioned his experience of riding high-speed rail in China.

¡°First of all, the infrastructure, the high-speed railway in China is great, it takes just four and a half hours from Beijing to Shanghai, which is unparalleled by the U.S. railway.¡±

Last October, Burns travelled to Gansu by high-speed train.

"The second advantage is scientific and technological capabilities, which will be a key area in the coming decades. 34% of Chinese first-year university students study engineering or STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), while only 5.6% in the United States. You know, China's population base is larger... which means that we lack real competitiveness in technological fields related to the future."

Speaking of China¡¯s military strength, Burns said that the Liberation Army has not fought in more than forty years, not worth mentioning, ¡°But I have seen the Liberation Army in my own eyes, and I think we have underestimated their military factuality and technical power.¡±

On September 18th, Defense Minister Dong Jun delivered a speech at the 12th Beijing Xiangshan Forum. Minister Dong Jun said that people who have experienced aggression, bullying and oppression hate the army's acting as an accomplice of hegemonism and becoming a tool for abusing force. As a teacher of peace, the stronger the Chinese army, the stronger the force restricting war will be, and the more secure world peace and development will be.

Burns also said at the event that the Chinese leadership has a strategic vision and can carry out a long-term layout of ten or even thirty years. For example, for 35 consecutive years, the Chinese foreign minister chose Africa for his first overseas visit in January every year, showing Africans that they are China's priority. In contrast, U.S. President Trump has never been to Africa during his first term, and former President Biden has only been to Angola once.

Burns lamented that it is difficult for the United States to compete with China at the level of strategic layout.

¡°I think China¡¯s technological, military and economic power is far more powerful than we think, and we can¡¯t continue to underestimate them,¡± he said.

Burns said that the United States should continue to maintain non-governmental exchanges with China. He said that there were 5 million tourist exchanges between China and the United States in 2019, and only 190,000 will remain in 2022, so tourism and personnel exchanges need to be resumed.

He said there were 15,000 U.S. students in China a decade ago, and only 350 by 2022.

"I try my best to push Duke, Stanford, Yale, University of California and other schools to resume Chinese programs and exchange programs. I have an advantage in the embassy. Many of my diplomats and military officers can speak Chinese because they have studied in universities and been to China. If we continue to reduce exchanges, the next ambassador will not have such a talent pool."

Chinese flag and American flag data map

Burns is unhappy with the Trump administration¡¯s massive cuts of government employees.

"I have worked in the government for many years and have seen the operation of bipartisan governments. I understand that sometimes it is necessary to reduce spending. However, the layoffs in the past few months have been very rude. 3,000 diplomats were directly fired, accounting for one-fifth of the total. There was no interview or buffer period. Some people were laid off when they were preparing to go abroad. They gave three hours to pack and leave, which was very disrespectful."

He said that no matter which party in the U.S. will rule in the future, if a president attaches great importance to the federal bureaucracy, it will have to rebuild these institutions, which undermines our diplomatic capabilities, and China is far outperforming us in this regard.

From April 2022 to January 2025, Burns served as the 13th U.S. Ambassador to China.

In an interview earlier this month, Burns expressed dissatisfaction with Trump¡¯s renaming of the Department of Defense as ¡°Ministry of War.¡±

Burns criticized the change of the name "China under its hands", "China will use this as evidence that the United States is a threat to the international order, and China is the defender of peace."

China-US competition, China's attitude is always clear, rendering competition has many disadvantages and no benefits, seeking cooperation is necessary rather than a choice. Facts have repeatedly proved that China-US cooperation is both advantageous, struggle is bad. to jump out of the logic of competition confrontation, take care of each other's interests and concerns, seek the largest number of conventions for exchanges and cooperation, draw the greatest circle of cooperation and win-win, to China and the United States for their respective development, common prosperity, to contribute the wisdom and strength of the great countries to world peace and development.