skyhawk2005 said:
How much does China spend on R&D?
How is it that a country like Israel can have more advanced technology than China, which has a much higher GDP and population?
You might be able to find some industry estimates on R&D budget for specific areas, like pharmaceuticals. But anything that has to do with military is nearly impossible to get an accurate estimate.
When comparring technology, you have to keep in mind that Israel maintained open tech transfer with the west while China remained closed (or embargo'ed) for decades. So naturally Israel is well ahead in many areas. In terms of military tech, the Israeli defense industry receives assitance and tech transfers from Europe initially, then the US.
This however comes at a price, the US government will dicate what Israeli government can and cannot sell, and sometimes pressure the Israelis to halt their own independent development program and turn it into joint US-Israeli program, or simply scrap it and make Israel import US hardware.
