A recently released report from a noted US think tank said that while China will reduce the military gap with the US, a hypothetical war between the…

A recently released report from a noted US think tank said that while China will reduce the military gap with the US, a hypothetical war between the two world powers would hurt China more, even as Chinese experts said the report’s publication shows the US’ hard-line attitude toward China

The report, "War with China: Thinking through the Unthinkable," published by the Rand Corporation, a research organization that offers public policy recommendations, said that "in 2015, US losses could be a relatively small fraction of forces committed, but still significant; Chinese losses could be much heavier than US losses and a substantial fraction of forces committed," but "China’s anti-access and area-denial will make it increasingly difficult for the US to gain military-operational dominance and victory, even in a long war."

Therefore, "by 2025, US losses could range from significant to heavy; Chinese losses, while still very heavy, could be somewhat less than in 2015," it said

Li Haidong, a professor at the Institute of International Relations of the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times that Rand is the representative of US military hardliners. If the report is only for internal use then it is not an issue. However, the publishing of this report will surely affect public opinion and attempts to influence US policy toward China. "Though some people in the US are tough toward China, it is still hard to see the US government starting a war," said Li

The report also said although war would harm both economies, damage to China’s could be catastrophic and lasting on the order of a 25-35 percent reduction in China’s GDP in a year-long war, compared with a 10-20 percent drop in the US GDP

Zhao Xiaozhuo, a research fellow at the Center on China-US Defense Relations of the PLA Academy of Military Science, told the Global Times that it is very hard to say to what extent Rand represents US policy. Rand, just like many official Chinese think tanks, receives research topics, information and financial support from the military and intelligence agencies, and issues reports for the departments

As of November 2015, Rand has published 191 reports related to China, covering politics, the economy, the military, the environment and intellectual rights, according to media reports