CHINA: China's military budget is to rise 14.7 percent from 2005

Record ID: 872895

  • Title: CHINA: China's military budget is to rise 14.7 percent from 2005
  • Date: 5th March 2006
  • Summary: (BN05) BEIJING, CHINA (MARCH 4, 2006) (REUTERS) WIDE VIEW OF TIANANMEN SQUARE, TRAFFIC, CARS AND CYCLIST PASS BY
  • Embargoed: 20th March 2006 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: China
  • City:
  • Country: China
  • Topics: Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVAAEGT4MXSBL1IGI1QB9K0OL84A
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: China is to spend 14.7 percent more on defence in 2006 than it did last year, a spokesman for the national parliament said on Saturday (March 4), adding that the budget for military equipment would get only a moderate increase.
    "The figure for defence budge of 2006, proposed by the state council to be submitted to the NPC session is 283.8 billion RMB, which is about 35.1 billion USD. It increased 14.7 percent compared to last year," said Jiang Enzhu.
    Extra money would be spent on salaries and fuel, among other things, spokesman Jiang Enzhu told reporters in a news conference ahead of the annual meeting of the National People's Congress opening on Sunday.
    Jiang defended the plan to allocate 283.8 billion yuan ($35.1 billion) this year to the defence budget, which is closely watched by advocates of greater U.S. military spending, especially if China strengthens its ability to seize Taiwan.
    Jiang stated that China's defence budget had risen in recent yeas along with the development of its economy and China had no intention to massively develop its military.
    "China is committed to a peaceful development. China has no intention and has no capability to massively develop military," said Jiang.
    A top Chinese Communist Party leader on Friday (March 3) vowed that Beijing would block any moves towards Taiwan independence but would work for a peaceful solution to the stand-off.
    Beijing claims sovereignty over the self-ruled island and its 23 million people and has threatened to use force if it formally declares independence.
    "We will try our very best to ensure a peaceful and stable development between mainland and Taiwan. We'll never allow Taiwan secessionists to separate Taiwan from China. Taiwan secessionists' activities in any means or under any names of separating Taiwan and China will never be realized," Jiang said.
    On Monday (February 27) independence-leaning President Chen Shui-bian scrapped Taiwan's National Unification Council and its 15-year-old unification guidelines, defying warnings from Beijing and Washington. The council had been established to reassure China that the island would not go its own way.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register