China must increase ability to win ‘local wars’- Wen
CHINA: China must enhance the ability of its military to win
“local wars”, Premier Wen Jiabao said Monday, as Beijing grows
increasingly assertive about its territorial claims in Asia. Beijing
lays claim to large swathes of the South China Sea which are also
claimed by its smaller neighbours, and must also secure supply routes
and new sources of raw materials to fuel its booming economy.
Wen’s made his comments at the opening of the National People’s
Congress (NPC), China’s parliament, a day after the government announced
military spending would top $100 billion in 2012 - an 11.2 percent
increase on last year.
“We will enhance the armed forces’ capacity to accomplish a wide
range of military tasks, the most important of which is to win local
wars under information age conditions,” Wen said in his “state of the
nation” speech.
China’s territorial disputes with countries including Japan, South
Korea, the Philippines and Vietnam have grown rockier in recent years
and its neighbours have accused it of behaving aggressively.
AFP |