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China says its military not a threat
2007-08-30
Claims that China's military development is a threat are "totally groundless," Beijing's defense chief said in Tokyo on Thursday while assuring his Japanese hosts that China is becoming more open about its defense spending. Chinese Defense Minister Cao Gangchuan met with his Japanese counterpart and made a speech as part of a five-day visit to Japan aimed at reversing a freeze in defense contacts between the two Asian neighbors and improving overall ties. The visit, the first by a Chinese defense chief to Japan in nearly a decade, comes amid persistent concerns in Japan about China's military buildup. Tokyo has expressed alarm at the pace of Chinese defense spending, and the lack of transparency in Beijing's military budget. Cao insisted in his speech to Japanese defense officials and lawmakers that China's military growth was not aimed at any country or people, and he reiterated Beijing's stance that it would never use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear states -- a group that includes Japan. "Some people who are not well-informed are making noises about China becoming a military threat, but that is totally groundless," said Cao, who arrived in Japan on Wednesday. Japanese former Foreign Minister Taro Aso, for instance, has called China's military a threat. In a meeting earlier in the day with Cao, Japanese Defense Minister Masahiko Komura urged China to disclose more details about its soaring military budget, repeating a concern that has also been voiced in Washington. In June, Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, and the Pentagon accused the Chinese military of intentionally understating what it spends on military programs. Its official defense budget for this year is about $45 billion, but the "real" budget is between $85 billion and $125 billion, Skelton said then. Komura specifically urged China to reveal details of troop deployment, equipment and training. Cao said Beijing was increasing transparency, and that the growth in spending has largely gone to salaries, uniforms and modernization of equipment in line with international trends, a Japanese defense official said on customary condition of anonymity. Cao also pointed to Taiwan as a justification for its spending. China and Taiwan split amid civil war in 1949, and Beijing considers the island part of its territory. China has threatened to invade Taiwan to block it achieving formal independence. "China needs military spending because of the Taiwan situation," the defense official quoted Cao as telling Komura. Japan's Defense Ministry lists Chinese military expansion as a top security concern in the region. Tokyo also expressed alarm when China successfully tested an anti-satellite missile in January, becoming only the third country to destroy an object in space. During the talks, Komura and Cao agreed to launch a working group to discuss possibly setting up a telephone hot line between their armies. The United States and China are also considering a similar hot line. The two sides also agreed on reciprocal port calls by navy ships, with Chinese vessels visiting Japan first, as early as November. Cao also addressed Japanese troops before the talks Thursday. Tokyo's relations with Beijing have been improving since Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe made a fence-mending trip to China immediately after taking office last September, reversing a steep decline in relations under his predecessor, Junichiro Koizumi. Cao is the first Chinese defense minister to visit Japan since Chi Haotian came to Tokyo in February 1998. ___ Associated Press writer Kozo Mizoguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report.
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