China announced its biggest rise in military spending in three years yesterday, a strong signal from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) that Beijing is not about to back away from its growing assertiveness in Asia, especially in disputed waters.
The government said it would increase the defense budget by 12.2 percent this year to 808.23 billion yuan (US$131.57 billion), as China seeks to develop more high-tech weapons and beef up coastal and air defenses.
The increase follows a nearly unbroken run of double-digit hikes in the defense budget for the past two decades.
“This is worrying news for China’s neighbors, particularly for Japan,” said Rory Medcalf, a regional security analyst at the independent Lowy Institute in Sydney.
Those who thought Xi might prefer to concentrate on domestic development over military expansion in a slowing economy had “underestimated the Chinese determination to shape its strategic environment,” he added.
The increase in spending appears to reflect Xi’s desire to build what he calls a strong, rejuvenated China. The spending jump is the biggest since a 12.7 percent rise in 2011.
Within hours of the announcement, officials in Taiwan and Japan had expressed disquiet over the absence of any details on how Beijing will spend the money.
In Taipei, while noting the “substantial” spending increase was needed to modernize China’s military, Ministry of National Defense spokesman Major General David Lo (羅紹和) said much remained hidden.
“The transparency of China’s defense budget has always been questionable, as it is widely seen there are a massive amount of military items hidden,” he said.
Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said China’s lack of clarity in its defense policy and spending was a global concern.
Speaking at the opening of the National People’s Congress yesterday, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang (李克強) said the government would “strengthen research on national defense and the development of new and high-technology weapons and equipment” and “enhance border, coastal and air defenses.”
He gave no details.
Conflict with Taiwan could leave China with “massive economic disruption, catastrophic military losses, significant social unrest, and devastating sanctions,” a US think tank said in a report released on Monday. The German Marshall Fund released a report titled If China Attacks Taiwan: The Consequences for China of “Minor Conflict” and “Major War” Scenarios. The report details the “massive” economic, military, social and international costs to China in the event of a minor conflict or major war with Taiwan, estimating that the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) could sustain losses of more than half of its active-duty ground forces, including 100,000 troops. Understanding Chinese
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) yesterday said it is closely monitoring developments in Venezuela, and would continue to cooperate with democratic allies and work together for regional and global security, stability, and prosperity. The remarks came after the US on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who was later flown to New York along with his wife. The pair face US charges related to drug trafficking and alleged cooperation with gangs designated as terrorist organizations. Maduro has denied the allegations. The ministry said that it is closely monitoring the political and economic situation
UNRELENTING: China attempted cyberattacks on Taiwan’s critical infrastructure 2.63 million times per day last year, up from 1.23 million in 2023, the NSB said China’s cyberarmy has long engaged in cyberattacks against Taiwan’s critical infrastructure, employing diverse and evolving tactics, the National Security Bureau (NSB) said yesterday, adding that cyberattacks on critical energy infrastructure last year increased 10-fold compared with the previous year. The NSB yesterday released a report titled Analysis on China’s Cyber Threats to Taiwan’s Critical Infrastructure in 2025, outlining the number of cyberattacks, major tactics and hacker groups. Taiwan’s national intelligence community identified a large number of cybersecurity incidents last year, the bureau said in a statement. China’s cyberarmy last year launched an average of 2.63 million intrusion attempts per day targeting Taiwan’s critical
‘SLICING METHOD’: In the event of a blockade, the China Coast Guard would intercept Taiwanese ships while its navy would seek to deter foreign intervention China’s military drills around Taiwan this week signaled potential strategies to cut the nation off from energy supplies and foreign military assistance, a US think tank report said. The Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) conducted what it called “Justice Mission 2025” exercises from Monday to Tuesday in five maritime zones and airspace around Taiwan, calling them a warning to “Taiwanese independence” forces. In a report released on Wednesday, the Institute for the Study of War said the exercises effectively simulated blocking shipping routes to major port cities, including Kaohsiung, Keelung and Hualien. Taiwan would be highly vulnerable under such a blockade, because it
RSS