Presented to the Stimson Center/CNA NMD-China Project on February 28, 2002

This report examines the Bush administration’s decision to withdraw from the Anti-Ballistic Missle (ABM) treaty, and its consequences on the US-China relationship. China’s likely response to this change in US policy is examined through China’s military strategies of the past. Finally, Admiral McDevitt identifies the new threats to US security and the necessity of an ABM system to be deveploed to combat these threats.