Democratic nations should refrain from attending China’s upcoming large-scale military parade, which Beijing could use to sow discord among democracies, Mainland Affairs Council Deputy Minister Shen You-chung (沈有忠) said.
China is scheduled to stage the parade on Wednesday next week to mark the 80th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II. The event is expected to mobilize tens of thousands of participants and prominently showcase China’s military hardware.
Speaking at a symposium in Taichung on Thursday, Shen said that Chinese Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi (王毅) recently met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a visit to New Delhi. Modi has indicated his willingness to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in the Chinese city of Tianjin, which is set to take place on Sunday and Monday next week.
Photo: EPA
Although Modi has not said whether he would also attend the parade, Shen said it is likely that he and other visiting leaders would be invited, given the proximity of the two events.
Indian media have voiced concerns that Modi might bring up the “one China” principle when meeting Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) in Tianjin, possibly in exchange for concessions from Beijing on the India-China border dispute or economic issues, he said.
Indian media also voiced concern that by attending the parade, Modi could be photographed alongside Xi and Russian President Vladimir Putin — leaders of two nations viewed as pursuing excessive military ambitions, he said, adding that such an image might signal a shift in India’s diplomatic posture.
Attention has therefore focused on whether Modi would issue a joint declaration after his meeting with Xi and whether he would ultimately attend the parade, Shen said.
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung has declined Xi’s invitation to the parade, but would send South Korean National Assembly Speaker Kim Jin-pyo on his behalf, Shen said, adding that whether Japan or the US would be understanding of such conduct remains to be seen.
So far, Slovakia is the only EU member state confirmed to take part in the parade, he said.
“We hope that free and democratic nations would not only stay away from China’s Sept. 3 parade, but also boycott or condemn the event,” he said, adding that Beijing might exploit the occasion to sow division among democracies.
China has become a persistent threat in the Indo-Pacific region — a reality the US is already well aware of, Shen said.
The economic gap between the US and China has narrowed dramatically over the past three decades. In 1992, the US economy was 15 times larger than China’s, but by 2008 this had shrunk to three times, and by 2014 to 1.5 times, he said.
Today, the US economy is only about one-and-a-half times bigger, with global forecasts suggesting that China could soon overtake the US as the world’s largest economy, he said.
A similar trend is visible in military spending, Shen said.
In 1996, the US outspent China by a factor of 26, a lead that had fallen to eightfold by 2008 and just threefold last year, he said.
While much of the US’ defense budget goes toward personnel and the upkeep of its bases around the world, about 90 percent of China’s military expenditure is concentrated in the Indo-Pacific region and along the India-China border, he said.
This concentrated buildup demonstrates why China’s military presence in the region represents a direct and tangible threat to the US, Shen said.
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