China’s Defense Ministry launched its first official Web site yesterday, part of an effort by the normally secretive military to be more transparent.
The launch of the site — including an English version — comes as the US Army’s top general visits Beijing for talks with his Chinese counterparts. US Army Chief of Staff General George Casey was to visit the headquarters of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) yesterday and meet PLA Chief of the General Staff Chen Bingde (陳炳德).
A notice on the Web site said it was “designed to let the outside world have a better perception of China’s national defense policy, help enhance foreign exchanges and cooperation [and] display before the world the fine image of the PLA as a mighty, civilized and peaceful force.”
PHOTO: REUTERS
The site will also help China’s drive to modernize its military, it said.
China has long been tight-lipped about its military strength and capacity, drawing criticism from other countries wary of the Asian giant’s growing power and skyrocketing military spending. Beijing says it is modernizing its military, but for purely defensive purposes.
But in recent years, China has been increasing its international military ties. Earlier this year, Chinese warships were sent to patrol waters off Somalia as part of the international effort against piracy.
Chinese Defense Minister Liang Guanglie (梁光烈) said earlier this month the army would develop peacefully and increase cooperation with foreign armed forces to fulfill its international obligations.
A Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman said last month the military planned to establish more information offices nationwide and hold more news conferences.
The Web site includes sections on China’s defense policies and laws and news about military exercises, peacekeeping roles and international military exchanges.
A picture of Chinese President Hu Jintao (胡錦濤), who is also chairman of the Communist Party’s Central Military Commission, which controls the military, is prominent on the home page. Pictures and information on weapons and equipment are also displayed.
China’s military spending has jumped by double-digit percentages for nearly two decades. This year, Beijing announced a 14.9 percent rise in military spending to 480.68 billion yuan (US$70.27 billion), though it was a smaller increase than previous years.
That spending puts it on par with Japan, Russia and the UK, but it is still dwarfed by the US, which spends nearly 10 times as much.
China’s growing military power has also created other image problems, with accusations in numerous countries that Chinese hackers have breached government and military networks.
Officials in the US, the UK and Germany have accused Chinese hackers backed by the country’s military of intruding into their government and defense computer networks.
Chinese government officials have denied accusations of computer espionage, saying they were meant to feed anxiety over Beijing’s growing influence.
Maintaining a Defense Ministry Web site could also open it up as a target from cyber attackers. One large cyber offensive on US and South Korean government agencies last month appeared to target their public Web sites, rather than trying to get at internal files.
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