A top US military leader on Tuesday admitted the United States has a limited understanding of Chinese military aims and is concerned about Beijing's lack of transparency.

"The growing PLA (People's Liberation Army) military capability remains a concern, and our understanding of PLA intentions is limited," said Admiral Timothy Keating of the US Pacific Command.

"The transparency that they profess is insufficient in our view," he told the Senate Armed Services Committee, a week after the release of a Pentagon report that said China had boosted total military spending in 2007 to more than twice its declared budget.

"They clearly want to expand their areas of influence and those strategic goals of theirs, if not exactly counter to ours, then they are at least of concern," the commander said.

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Keating said that among US concerns were Chinese surface-to-air capabilities and Chinese electronic warfare development.

"We have state-of-the-art equipment that we can deploy if we need to," Keating said. "The electronic countermeasures we enjoy are in most cases sufficient and in some cases insufficient."

The Pentagon's annual assessment said Beijing's lack of transparency posed risks to stability and voiced concern over how it would use its expanding military power.

The report highlighted Chinese development of cruise and ballistic missiles capable of striking aircraft carriers and other warships at sea, anti-satellite weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles.

It also cited numerous cyber intrusions into US and other computer networks around the world over the past year, apparently from within China.

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