Abraham Denmark, deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia, provided details of the Defense Department‘s annual report to Congress about Chinese military and security developments during a press briefing held Friday at the Pentagon, DoD News reported Friday.

Terri Moon Cronk writes the 145-page document highlights China’s investments to increase its military’s force projection, anti-access/area denial, space, cyber and electromagnetic capabilities.

Denmark told reporters Friday the department estimated that China spent more than $180 billion on military programs during 2015.

He said DoD observed the country has used assertive maritime strategies to reclaim outposts and construct bases on several islands in the South China Sea.

“China’s leaders are leveraging the country’s power to expand its international influence — and its military footprint overseas,” he added, according to DoD News.

He also pointed to the Chinese government’s efforts to increase the ability of the People’s Liberation Army to perform joint operations through the establishment of new geographic commands.

“As the United States builds a stronger foundation for a military-to-military relationship with China, we will continue to monitor China’s evolving military strategy, doctrine, and force development,” Denmark told reporters.

He added the DoD aims to encourage China to be more transparent about the country’s military modernization efforts.

Yang Yujun, a spokesman for the Chinese defense ministry, has said the Defense Department‘s annual report about China’s military programs gives a “distorted” view of Chinese defense policies and an “unfair” depiction of the country’s maritime activities, Reuters reported Sunday.

Benjamin Kang Lim writes DoD said in a report to Congress Friday that the department found China’s reclamation efforts in the South China Sea encompass approximately 3,200 acres of land over the past two years, including 3,000-meter airstrips around the disputed Spratlys Islands.

The report said Yang told China’s Xinhua news agency said those construction projects aim to serve civilian purposes while Chinese military reform initiatives seek to help maintain the country’s sovereignty and security.

Yang added he believes U.S. has initiated “militarization in the South China Sea” through deployment of military aircraft and warships around the region, Agence France-Presse reported Sunday.

U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Bill Moran, chief of naval personnel, has been nominated to serve as vice chief of naval operations at the Pentagon.

Moran — who is also currently deputy chief of naval operations for manpower, personnel, training and education at the Office of the Chief of Naval Operations — is also due for promotion to the rank of admiral, the Defense Department said Friday.

In his current role, Moran oversees an annual operating budget of $29 billion — with over 26,00 personnel under his helm — and leads the planning and programming of Navy manpower, personnel, training and education resources.

The scope of his responsibilities also covers the Navy Recruiting Command, Navy Personnel Command and Naval Education and Training Command.

Moran has served as a P-3 operational pilot and commanded Patrol Squadron 46 and Patrol and Reconnaissance Wing 2 and was also an instructor pilot with Patrol Squadron 30.

He also held roles such as assistant Washington placement officer at the Bureau of Naval Personnel, deputy director for Navy staff and executive assistant to the CNO and commander of U.S. Pacific Command.

Vice Adm. Jan Tighe, commander of the Fleet Cyber Command and 10th fleet at the U.S. Navy, has been nominated to serve as deputy chief of naval operations for information warfare under the office of the chief of naval operations.

President Barack Obama also nominated Tighe as director of naval intelligence at the Defense Department, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said in a DoD release published Friday.

Tighe joined the Navy in 1984 as a special duty cryptology officer after she graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy.

Her previous roles at the service branch include executive assistant to commander of the U.S. Cyber Command, head of multi-agency and multi-service personnel at the National Security Agency/Central Security Service in Hawaii and deputy commander of the Fleet Cyber Command/10th fleet.

She has a Level 3 certification in program management under the Defense Acquisition Workforce Improvement Act and serves as a member of the Acquisition Professionals Community.

Tighe earned the Naval Aviation Observer wings and the Information Dominance Warfare pin during the Operation Desert Shield/Storm in the Persian Gulf as an airborne special evaluator onboard the VQ-1 EP-3E aircraft.

Rear Adm. Thomas Moore, program executive officer for aircraft carriers at the U.S. Navy, has been nominated commander of the Naval Sea Systems Command.

Defense Secretary Ashton Carter said Friday President Barack Obama also endorsed the 35-year Navy veteran for promotion to the rank of vice admiral.

Moore will be replaced in the role of PEO for aircraft carriers by Rear Adm. Brian Antonio, PEO for the military branch’s littoral combat ships.

NAVSEA is responsible for the design, construction, acquisition and maintenance of the service branch’s ships, submarines and weapons systems as well as the management of 150 procurement programs and foreign military sales agreements.

Moore served as director of fleet readiness before he took the role of PEO for aircraft carriers in August 2011.

He spent five years as major program manager for in-service aircraft carriers, such as USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) and George H.W. Bush (CVN 77), prior to his appointment in 2008 as deputy director of fleet readiness.

He held various positions as a trained surface nuclear officer for more than a decade including weapons officer for the USS Conyngham (DDG 17) and machinery division officer onboard USS South Carolina (CGN 37).

Moore is a recipient of the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal, Legion of Merit and the Meritorious Service Medal.

The Senate Armed Services Committee has completed its markup of a fiscal 2017 defense policy bill that proposes some Defense Department organizational reforms, Defense News reported Thursday.

Joe Gould writes the committee’s version of the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act contains a provision that would remove the Office of the Under Secretary for Acquisitions, Technology and Logistics and create two new functions to replace the current AT&L organization.

The bill seeks to distribute responsibilities currently held by Frank Kendall to a proposed undersecretary of defense for research and engineering and an undersecretary of management and support, Gould reports.

SASC’s NDAA would establish an R&E office to oversee innovation and policies related to national security technology programs and mandate an M&S office to help run DoD organizations that perform business operations.

Sydney Freedberg Jr. of Breaking Defense reported Friday the committee also aims to reduce the number of flag officers and Senior Executive Service members by up to 25 percent through the defense policy bill.

The committee also proposed to dissolve the F-35 Joint Program Office and delegate the office’s current responsibilities to service branches, according to Freedberg.