The gap between American and Chinese technological and military innovation "is narrowing" so quickly that it poses a serious threat to U.S. national security, representing a "holy sh–" moment for the nation, retired Navy SEAL Adm. William McRaven said Wednesday.
"We need to make sure that the American public knows that now is the time to do something" about China's rapid research and technology developments that threaten national security, McRaven told the Council on Foreign Relations in New York, Business Insider reports.
McRaven, 63, headed Special Operations Command during the 2011 operation that killed Osama bin Laden at the al-Qaida compound in Pakistan.
He is now a professor of national security at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas at Austin.
McRaven said, while Beijing's economy, defense efforts and role in intellectual property theft are growing, "the gap" between U.S. and Chinese innovation "is narrowing."
His comments come on the release of a council report saying China's theft of U.S. intellectual property is fueling its speedy development of new technologies, including 5G commercialization.
McRaven called these developments a "Sputnik moment" for the United States, referring to the Cold War space race with Russia.
"If not now, when?" he asked. "It's just going to get harder as we get further into the future."
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