China's Foreign Conventional Arms Acquisitions: Background and Analysis [Updated November 6, 2001]   [open pdf - 454KB]

"This CRS Report examines the major, foreign conventional weapon systems that China has acquired or has committed to acquire since 1990, with particular attention to implications for U.S. security concerns. It is not the assumption of this report that China's military, the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA), will engage in conflict with other forces in Asia. Nonetheless, since the mid-1990s, there has been increasing concern about China's assertiveness in Asia and military buildup against Taiwan."