Be wary of defence contractors, Chinese study warns Beijing, pointing to US system

AdvertisementChina’s militaryChinaDiplomacyBe wary of defence contractors, Chinese study warns, pointing to US systemChina should take note of the way profit-seeking players in the United States have undermined its national security, researchers say 2-MIN READ2-MIN ListenAlyssa ChenPublished: 9:00am, 20 Aug 2026Updated: 9:16am, 20 Aug 2026A new study from China has warned Beijing of the danger of defence contractors having too much influence over defence policy, pointing to the profit-driven expansion of the US military-industrial complex as a salutary example. In the study published on Monday, researchers at Shanghai Jiao Tong University’s National Institute of Strategic Studies said Washington’s “iron triangle” – linking the Department of Defence, private contractors and congressional committees – had hijacked US national security policy. Defence contractors, the military, and politicians formed a mutually reinforcing alliance where profits, expanded budgets, and political capital aligned, the study said. “Their interests create a self-perpetuating cycle of ‘military expansion, increased revenue, mutual benefit, further expansion’ that drives armament growth independent of external security pressures,” wrote lead author Gu Jianyi, who was previously a researcher at a military institute. “The core flaw of the US military-industrial complex is that capital profit-seeking overrides national security and public interest.” He cautioned that lobbying, manufactured conflicts and threat perception created an inherent risk of “expanding armaments merely for profit”. AdvertisementSelect VoiceSelect Speed0.8x0.9x1.0x1.1x1.2x1.5x1.75x00:0000:001.00x