China’s Military Spending Proliferates
In January, China’s State Council Information Office released a white paper report, China’s National Defense in 2008. This 95-page policy paper addresses a myriad of topics including China’s security challenges, modernization goals for its fighting force, and military budget.
China’s 2008 defense expenditures exeperienced its biggest increase since 2002 – nearly $45 billion or 18 percent. These numbers are a cause for alarm by China’s regional neighbors and global powers who remain suspicious about China’s intentions. Concerns over China’s military spending boom, however, is nothing new.
The white papers are intended to provide some transparency to an otherwise secretive military. In this latest report – the sixth of its kind issued every other year since 1998 – the Chinese government’s snapshot misses the mark.
Asia Times writes:
The latest paper…left many questions unanswered about the buildup of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) and repeated old figures for defense spending that foreign analysts have said could be under-reported by as much as three times. China has not yet announced a defense budget for this year, but in 2008 it said spending would rise by 17.6% that year to about US$60 billion.
The United States and Japan have pressured China for years to reveal more about the development of its military capabilities, its foreign arms sales and the goals of its military transformation. The new paper tried to deflect further pressure by noting that US military spending dwarfs China’s.
Tags: China, defence, military
You can comment below, or link to this permanent URL from your own site.