Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Saturday delivered a blunt assessment of China’s accelerating military growth and what he called America’s narrowing window to respond.
The Pentagon is tracking a "historic military buildup" by Beijing that is reshaping the balance of power in the Indo-Pacific, he said during an appearance at the Reagan National Defense Forum in Simi Valley, Calif.
"We are aware of their historic military buildup," Hegseth told the audience, framing China’s surge in conventional forces, missiles, and nuclear modernization as a strategic challenge the United States cannot meet with incremental change.
The secretary has issued similar warnings in recent months, arguing that Chinese pressure on Taiwan and regional allies could become an "imminent" threat if deterrence erodes.
Hegseth pointed particularly to China’s industrial muscle. He said Beijing’s shipbuilding capacity and broader strategic modernization now outpace the United States, a gap he described as dangerous in any prolonged competition.
That advantage, he argued, gives China the ability to replace losses faster, expand its navy more quickly, and sustain high-tempo production while Washington wrestles with slower procurement cycles.
The centerpiece of Hegseth’s message was urgency at home.
"The most important thing we can do is look inward and increase urgency of ensuring we rebuild the arsenal of freedom," he said.
In his telling, the U.S. answer to China’s buildup is not a single weapons program but a systemic reset of how America equips its forces.
Hegseth highlighted what he called a "complete game change" in acquisitions, saying the administration has moved beyond "reform" or "tinkering" to an overhaul designed to deliver capability at wartime speed.
"That is why we did acquisitions for military sale overhaul… this is complete-game change in how we deliver systems to the battlefield. We have to, we don’t have time," he said. The emphasis tracks with Pentagon initiatives unveiled this fall to streamline procurement, push industry to produce faster, and accelerate foreign military sales.
Ultimately, Hegseth said, the goal is simple: "field the best as quickly as possible."
He promised that U.S. planners are “prudent” and fully aware of Beijing’s trajectory, but insisted awareness alone is useless without speed. At RNDF, he cast that speed as the modern equivalent of Reagan-era industrial resolve—less nostalgia, more assembly line.
The secretary’s warning was clear: China is building at scale, and America’s deterrent depends on whether it can rebuild faster than the challenge grows.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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