China yesterday condemned the US Department of Defense’s annual report on the Chinese military, calling it deliberate distortion that has “severely damaged” mutual trust.
In its annual report to the US Congress on Chinese military activities, the department on Friday said that China is expected to add substantial military infrastructure, including communications and surveillance systems, to artificial islands in the South China Sea this year.
Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesman General Yang Yujun (楊宇軍) expressed “strong dissatisfaction” and “firm opposition” to the Pentagon report and said it has “severely damaged mutual trust,” Xinhua news agency reported.
The report “hyped up” China’s military threat and lack of transparency, “deliberately distorted” Chinese defense policies and “unfairly” depicted Chinese activities in the East China and South China seas, Yang was quoted as saying.
“China follows a national defense policy that is defensive in nature,” Yang said, adding that the nation’s military build-up and reforms are aimed at maintaining sovereignty, security and territorial integrity, and guaranteeing China’s peaceful development.
It is the US that has always been suspicious and flexing its military muscle by frequently sending military aircraft and warships to the region, Yang said.
Despite its calls for freedom of navigation and restraint for peace, the US has pushed forward militarization of the South China Sea with an “intention to exert hegemony,” Yang added.
The Pentagon report said the planned addition of military infrastructure would give China long-term “civil-military bases” in the contested waters.
It estimated that China’s reclamation work had added more than 1,300 hectares of land on seven features it occupies in the Spratly Islands (Nansha Islands, 南沙群島) in the space of two years.
Taiwan also claims the Spratlys.
The report said China completed its major reclamation efforts in October last year, switching focus to infrastructure development, including three 3,000m-long airstrips that can accommodate advanced fighter jets.
Yang defended the construction, saying it serves mostly civilian purposes and helps fulfil China’s international responsibilities and obligations by providing more public goods.
The Pentagon report came at a time of heightened tension over maritime territories claimed by China and disputed by several Asian nations, including Taiwan. Washington has accused Beijing of militarizing the South China Sea, while Beijing, in turn, has criticized increased US naval patrols and exercises in Asia.
The US report renewed accusations against China’s government and military for cyberattacks against US government computer systems, a charge Beijing denies.
The Pentagon said attacks last year appeared focused on intelligence collection.
SECURITY: As China is ‘reshaping’ Hong Kong’s population, Taiwan must raise the eligibility threshold for applications from Hong Kongers, Chiu Chui-cheng said When Hong Kong and Macau citizens apply for residency in Taiwan, it would be under a new category that includes a “national security observation period,” Mainland Affairs Council (MAC) Minister Chiu Chui-cheng (邱垂正) said yesterday. President William Lai (賴清德) on March 13 announced 17 strategies to counter China’s aggression toward Taiwan, including incorporating national security considerations into the review process for residency applications from Hong Kong and Macau citizens. The situation in Hong Kong is constantly changing, Chiu said to media yesterday on the sidelines of the Taipei Technology Run hosted by the Taipei Neihu Technology Park Development Association. With
CARROT AND STICK: While unrelenting in its military threats, China attracted nearly 40,000 Taiwanese to over 400 business events last year Nearly 40,000 Taiwanese last year joined industry events in China, such as conferences and trade fairs, supported by the Chinese government, a study showed yesterday, as Beijing ramps up a charm offensive toward Taipei alongside military pressure. China has long taken a carrot-and-stick approach to Taiwan, threatening it with the prospect of military action while reaching out to those it believes are amenable to Beijing’s point of view. Taiwanese security officials are wary of what they see as Beijing’s influence campaigns to sway public opinion after Taipei and Beijing gradually resumed travel links halted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the scale of
A US Marine Corps regiment equipped with Naval Strike Missiles (NSM) is set to participate in the upcoming Balikatan 25 exercise in the Luzon Strait, marking the system’s first-ever deployment in the Philippines. US and Philippine officials have separately confirmed that the Navy Marine Expeditionary Ship Interdiction System (NMESIS) — the mobile launch platform for the Naval Strike Missile — would take part in the joint exercise. The missiles are being deployed to “a strategic first island chain chokepoint” in the waters between Taiwan proper and the Philippines, US-based Naval News reported. “The Luzon Strait and Bashi Channel represent a critical access
Pope Francis is be laid to rest on Saturday after lying in state for three days in St Peter’s Basilica, where the faithful are expected to flock to pay their respects to history’s first Latin American pontiff. The cardinals met yesterday in the Vatican’s synod hall to chart the next steps before a conclave begins to choose Francis’ successor, as condolences poured in from around the world. According to current norms, the conclave must begin between May 5 and 10. The cardinals set the funeral for Saturday at 10am in St Peter’s Square, to be celebrated by the dean of the College
RSS