National Abilities/technologies/skills: What are countries good at.

Hi everyone,

I do not have a strong background in Military science. Most of my knowledge of military equipment comes from computer games - obviously a very unreliable source of information.

I have a few questions. I would be grateful for any help.

1. China is often portrayed as having a very advanced cyber capability. Is this true? Is it better than the US cyber capability or is it just a case of the rest of the world is well behind the US, and China is the only country that comes close to matching the US capability?

2. Is the Russian S400 system really the best AA system in the world or is this just an effective marketing strategy?

3. Do countries like Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran have any equipment that would be a match for western equipment?

4. Does Russia out do the United States in any military fields?

Thank you for any help.

 

National abilities, technologies and skills.

Nations do not have abilities and skills. People as individuals do. Understanding that, often different nations have been collectively spent a considerable amount of money, time and effort in training their youth to have the training and skills to advance certain technologies. Some nations haven't.

Some of the nations you didn't name, Singapore and Israel and Japan, have made an effort to guide their youth into computer technology, and have gotten considerable return on their investment.

As a gamer, have you ever heard of, or played, an old game called Harpoon? What is your opinion of it.

 

My primary interest is in Russia and China.

When you consider that Russia has been fighting in Transnistria, North Ossettia, Tajikistan, Georgia, South Ossettia, Abkhazia, Chechnya, Dagastan, and Ukraine, in the brief period since the breakup of the USSR, it seems like the potential for a regional conflict (that ends up dragging half the world into it) is higher than I would like.

China also seems to be increasing its military strength and asserting claims to disputed land in Southeast Asia.

Singapore, Israel, and Japan would be allies of my country in a major war.

My main concern is that some nutjob will go and start a war that ends up involving New Zealand.

I guess what I am really asking is whether the threat from Russia and China is overstated. I would like to think that American electronic warfare is just as capable (preferably superior) as the Chinese and Russians. To the point that China or Russia would never be so stupid as to think it can win world war three (and thus start it).

I had not heard of Harpoon, I just looked it up, and it sounds like a game I would enjoy.

 

For the cyber warfare actually we can't know which one is better as it's all pretty hidden by the countries. In the battlefield I think that it could be unknown the result as they seem all pretty equal in all fields.. like naval, aircraft, artillery and infantry but I would go for the west with USA & allies are stil the ones who rocks.

 

1. false.
It is all about anti-China propaganda to bring up "Chinese cyber attack" every other day.
The US has the most sophistic cyber attack ability and it is certainly unmatched by the Chinese.

2. Russian S400 is certainly very advanced on paper, but it hasn't been tested in real combat.
So you can't say it is the "best". Although "one of the best" is true.

3. North Korea and Iran aren't even in the same league as China and Russia. They have to buy majority of their weapons from other suppliers.
China and Russia are both testing new stealth jets, new destroyers, submarines, as well as energy weapons.

4. Aside nuclear weapons which would be MAD, I don't really see Russia has any advantage over the US military. Their military budget is way lower and more than half of their troops aren't even modernized. It is again all about propaganda. The truth is simple, aside the US, and perhaps Israel, no other country is prepared for war.

 

Oh, Is there any field in which the Russian are better militarily equiped or trained than the US? Yes. Winterization. They are better prepared to fight in winter conditions.

 

Since initially posting this topic I have learned a few things by reading Military Analysis reports. So I will add for those who are interested, that the Russian Federation maintains a very effective "Flame thrower" capability.

If I remember correctly, they have there own "flamethrower corps".

Russian flamethrower technology is very advanced and has gone well beyond the days of "spewing" out flames from the end of end of a hose a short distance.

The Russian Federation also has a superior thermobaric capability to the US. Specifically, the ATBIP.

"It is all about anti-China propaganda to bring up "Chinese cyber attack" every other day. The US has the most sophistic cyber attack ability and it is certainly unmatched by the Chinese."

Do you have a source for this information? Since starting this thread I have watched a clip on Youtube of a high level Intelligence official saying that the US focus is on havinga strong cyber defence because they have much more to lose (favouring defence), and not much to gain (doesn't favour attacK).

 

@ Alotofquestions,
Actually you are the one needs real source to prove that China is behind all the cyber attacks. Innocent until proven guilty, isn't it?
I have seen none but accusations repeated again and again by mainstream propaganda machines with no real technical proof but words. If you base your information off someone's "official statement", then it is not believable.
Perhaps you should Google "PRISM program". A program from NSA that require major tech companies to scoop around for them. Large corporations such as Google, Microsoft, Apple, etc. are all a part of the program. All your personal information belong to NSA. The "you" is not limited to Americans, but people from all around the world who uses technologies from these companies. The US government is the largest hacker in the world, while try to blame everything on the countries they have put on the enemy list to divert attention.

One time in a Yahoo news, they even showed a photo of a Chinese hospital and the caption was "headquarter of a Chinese cyber division in Shanghai". I laughed. But too bad, many people would believe it in an instant just by the looking at the caption (words), since the idea of "Chinese are hackers" have been implanted in their heads for so long (repeated by mainstream propaganda again and again).

 

"@ Alotofquestions, Actually you are the one needs real source to prove that China is behind all the cyber attacks. Innocent until proven guilty, isn't it? I have seen none but accusations repeated again and again by mainstream propaganda machines with no real technical proof but words."

Why do I need to provide a source that "China is behind all the cyber attacks"? I did not assert that they are . I asked you for a source for this:

"It is all about anti-China propaganda to bring up "Chinese cyber attack" every other day. The US has the most sophistic cyber attack ability and it is certainly unmatched by the Chinese."

 

The source is out there in mainstream media propaganda on daily basis. Every time you read about news on "Chinese hackers" you will see zero actual proof. That is the proof of my point

The NSA under US government has the most extensive surveillance/hacking network out there monitoring almost everyone. They might not care about what you are doing now, but if it is needed, they can pull all your "files" on everything in an instant which should include everything you have done on the computer/internet/cellphone etc.

Do you actually realize that majority of the world's internet traffic goes through US servers? If it is needed, the US government can cut certain country off from the rest of the world... on the internet.

 

"The source is out there in mainstream media propaganda on daily basis. Every time you read about news on "Chinese hackers" you will see zero actual proof. That is the proof of my point"

But I am not asking about a source for the Chinese hackers. I am asking about a source for "The US has the most sophistic cyber attack ability and it is certainly unmatched by the Chinese."

I want to know about the US cyber attack ability.

You see in my reply to you when you made the statement in the first place:

"Do you have a source for this information? Since starting this thread I have watched a clip on Youtube of a high level Intelligence official saying that the US focus is on having a strong cyber defence because they have much more to lose (favouring defence), and not much to gain (doesn't favour attacK)."

I am enquiring into your statement about the US.

I am not trying to be difficult, but you have to understand that as a foreigner, I am sort of use to hearing the US "has/is the best in the world at..." without any proof...

For example:

"The FBI is the most sophisticated law enforcement agency in the world" - is it?
"The US Marines are the most highly trained war fighter in the world" are they?
"US Navy SEALS are the best in the world" - said who?

I am not necessarily disagreeing with you, in fact I would like to think that the US does have a superior capability to China, but are you basing your assertion on something reliable or on US marketing (which is notorious around the world for making unfounded claims of being the best/greatest at everything).

 

I'm not sure if this helps at all, but I found these 2016 comparisons on Youtube that play off the major powers against each other in some detail and in a seemingly unbiased way:





If you want a serious side-by-side comparison, draw up a table as you watch, as it then becomes very clear.