Leaving the big picture, the cutting-edge equipment of the US military was found to have Chinese-made parts, which made the Americans panic.
According to a report by the United Kingdom, some key components of the most advanced US fighter F-22 and F-35, such as the radar cabin and landing gear, are all produced in China. As soon as this news came out, the top level of the US military was dumbfounded, because the United States has had regulations since 1973 prohibiting defense companies from buying special metals from abroad. Now its own watchdog fighter actually uses Chinese parts, which is a big deal.
The Pentagon hastened to halt the production line and inspected aircraft parts overnight, only to find that even the circuit boards of the F-35 were made in China. This is not a big deal because the circuit boards control the aircraft's engines, fuel systems, and navigation systems. Originally, the U.S. military thought that these parts were provided by the British ** businessmen, but they did not expect that the company was wholly acquired by a company in Shenzhen as early as 2013.
But the strange thing is that in less than a week, the attitude of the United States took a 180-degree turn and decided not to replace the parts and continue to use the Chinese ones. It's not because Americans are big-hearted, it's because they find themselves without a choice. The key materials for these parts, such as the rare earth elements dysprosium and neodymium, are almost monopolized by China. China is the world's largest exporter of rare earths, with nearly 4 million tonnes of rare earth ore reserves in 2021, accounting for 36% of the world's total. Although it is also sold in Japan, whether it is quality or **, China's rare earths are far superior to Japanese goods. If the United States wants to buy it from Japan, the cost will directly increase by more than ten times, and the US military simply cannot afford it.
Some of the major equipment of the US military, such as F-22 fighters and Virginia-class nuclear submarines, require large quantities of rare earths, and these materials have to be bought from China. According to the statistics of the US military, a large number of parts are made in China, including C-130 transport aircraft, V-22 transport aircraft, CH-46***, etc. Do you think the United States can avoid a headache?
Now it can be said that the entire military industrial system of the United States is almost eaten by China, and even small objects have not been spared. For example, Vilco, one of the seven major brands of American boots, was revealed to have placed an order of $81 million for a Chinese factory. China's military boots are known as "the world's first military boots", and the American counterparts found that Vilco used Chinese goods, and they were so angry that their noses were crooked. The U.S. Department of Defense sent five of Vilko's executives directly to prison. These military companies would rather risk going to jail to do business with China, which shows how good Chinese goods are.
Although the United States says no, it is very honest in its body. For example, the United States once sent school bags to refugees under the guise of humanitarianism, and as a result, the whole world saw the Chinese characters on the school bags. The materials left by the United States in the Middle East have also made the world aware of China's air-conditioned containers, which are also affordable. I feel that the United States is advertising China for free. Now the United States is shouting that it wants to decouple from China, okay, let's see what you do if you leave China.