China vows 'reasonable' rise in defense spending ahead of national security budget's release

BEIJING –China will maintain “a reasonable and appropriate growth rate” for defense spending this year, a top government spokesman said Monday ahead of the release of the country’s defense budget — a closely watched indicator of Beijing’s strategic intentions. The Japan Times reports. Continue reading original article

The Military & Aerospace Electronics take:

4 March 2019 -- Zhang Yesui, the spokesman for the second session of the 13th National People’s Congress, the country’s rubber-stamp national legislature, said China’s “limited defense spending,” which he said is aimed at safeguarding national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity, “poses no threat to any other country,” the official Xinhua News Agency reported.

“China maintains a reasonable and appropriate growth rate in its defense expenditure to meet its demand in safeguarding national security and military reform with Chinese characteristics,” Zhang Yesui, a former ambassador to Washington, said. The legislature is expected to unveil the defense budget Tuesday.

Last year, China boosted its defense spending 8.1 percent from 2017 to 1.11 trillion yuan ($165 billion), the largest increase in three years as leader Xi Jinping seeks to turn the country’s military into a “world-class” force.

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John Keller, chief editor
Military & Aerospace Electronics

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