The United States must prepare for a possible military conflict with China by developing new weapons, strengthening ties with allies and improving the Pentagon’s efficiency, a senior Trump administration official said on Thursday.

“The stakes of the challenge of conflict with China, in other words, are formidable,” said Chad Sbragia, deputy assistant secretary of defence for China. “This is a long-term process. We have to be agile, smart.”

The People’s Liberation Army is an increasingly formidable adversary that is marrying long-standing ambition with unprecedented new resources, Sbragia, the former US defence attaché in Beijing, told the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.

This is allowing China and the PLA to expand the military’s global presence, modernise its capabilities and more effectively challenge US national interests, he added.

While the Pentagon has emphasised alliance building in Southeast Asia and the Pacific as part of its Indo-Pacific strategy, other Trump administration policies have irritated many long-standing European and Asian allies.

Traditional partners have bridled over President Donald Trump’s aggressive use of tariffs, his decision to withdraw from multilateral agreements and his focus on “America First” policies.

Sbragia declined to say whether the Pentagon was surprised by Manila’s announcement this month that it would end the Philippines-US Visiting Forces Agreement. The island nation is strategically located in the South China Sea, a potential hotspot as Beijing ramps up its island-building activities in the contested region.

But Sbragia said Beijing’s effort to sway allies is no surprise. “It’s a competition,” he said. “We have to be very clear-eyed. These countries are coming under increasing pressure.”

Dennis Blair, a fellow with the Sasakawa Peace Foundation, a former admiral and an ex-director of National Intelligence, told the commission that Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte’s views often run counter to those of his own military establishment. Duterte reportedly scratched the visiting forces agreement in retaliation for a cancelled US visa involving a personal ally.

“It throws grit into the gears,” of serious US-Philippines military cooperation, Blair said. “But it doesn’t eliminate it.”

Finally, Sbragia said, preparing for a more ambitious PLA requires the Pentagon to clean its own house. This includes improving American military strategy and performance, using the Defence Department’s budget more efficiently and drawing more effectively on civilian innovation while safeguarding US technology.

In recent weeks, the administration has shocked the science community with the high-profile arrest of a Harvard University chemistry department head for his China ties and by investigating top universities for failing to disclose links to Beijing and other countries. Science policy experts warn, however, that too many restrictions risk undermining collaboration and US competitiveness.

While China has an ambitious military blueprint – including more bases overseas; the unification of Taiwan with the mainland by force, if necessary; and closer overseas investment, trade and military linkage – an armed US-China clash is hardly inevitable, the senior defence official said.

“Competition with China does not mean confrontation, nor must it lead to conflict,” Sbragia said. The PLA briefed US officials after releasing its 2019 Defence White Paper and Washington hopes to maintain a “constructive, stable and results-oriented defence relationship” with Beijing, he added.

With the coronavirus spreading globally, amid some evidence that it has peaked, the PLA was drawn in early to help Beijing fight the epidemic that originated in Wuhan, Sbragia said. The Pentagon is watching how this deployment plays out for insights into the PLA’s ability to mobilise rapidly and respond effectively overseas, he said.

But the jury is still out on how well it has performed. “The PLA is being brought in early, often,” Sbragia said. “At the end of the day, this will make the PLA better, or not.”

The PLA now has around 2 million people in uniform, not counting paramilitary, armed police, coastguard or reserve forces, although it has been reducing that number to create a more responsive force. This contingent compares with about 1.3 million people under US active duty and another 800,000 on reserve.