Officials announced this year's military budget on the eve of the opening of the National People's Congress, the country's rubber-stamp parliament, which meets for two weeks each year.
Chinese soldiers take part in a parade in Hong Kong: US issues warning as China boosts military
The Pentagon claimed China had the most active programme to buy and develop ballistic missiles of any country in the world
The headline figure will go up from 350 billion to 417.8 billion yuan (£30 billion), a rise of 19.4 per cent.
A spokesman said the rise still left China's budget trailing middle-ranking western powers such as Britain and France, let alone America, and the military preparations were solely "defensive" in nature.
But a few hours before he spoke, the Pentagon released its annual report on the state of China's military preparedness, in which it estimated that total expenditure on the People's Liberation Army at about double the official level.
It claimed China had the most active programme to buy and develop ballistic missiles of any country in the world and was "developing capabilities" for use in conflicts over resources and disputed territories.
Jiang Enzhu, the congress spokesman, defended the increase in spending. He said the total represented a much lower proportion of the economy than in the US or Britain.
Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 12:22 am Post subject: Re: Pentagon concern at China's rising military muscle
...and the U.S. military budget exceeds that of any other nation by at least 7 times and almost accounts for half of worldwide military expenditures.
$439.3 billion(not including Iraq and other military expenditures which are close to $200 billion/year total) in 2007 the U.S. spent, versus $59.8 billion in China this year.
We don't need to be spending more than $60 billion a year and we have as much to fear from China as anyone else who has nukes. More spending is not going to stop that... _________________ The unnecessary felling of a tree, perhaps the old growth of centuries, seems to me a crime little short of murder. ~Thomas Jefferson
Joined: Sep 17, 2005 Posts: 169 Location: The Netherlands
Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 5:10 am Post subject: Re: Pentagon concern at China's rising military muscle
The_Toecutter wrote:
We don't need to be spending more than $60 billion a year and we have as much to fear from China as anyone else who has nukes. More spending is not going to stop that...
Probably. But buying guns is way cooler than buying solar panels. _________________ The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.
Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 5:35 am Post subject: Re: Pentagon concern at China's rising military muscle
It is obvious that as China's economy expands its military expenditure will also expand. It is equally obvious that increasing military power and ability to project that power, will bring China into conflict with the US, especially over access to middle-east oil.
The big question is, as fossil fuel depletion proceeds, for how long will the Chinese be capable of maintaining an expanding economy? The present trends would appear to suggest that the US economy is on the verge of imploding, whilst the Chinese economy is growing fast.
Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 1:40 pm Post subject: Re: Pentagon concern at China's rising military muscle
Sideous wrote:
It is obvious that as China's economy expands its military expenditure will also expand. It is equally obvious that increasing military power and ability to project that power, will bring China into conflict with the US, especially over access to middle-east oil.
No it isn't, unless you mean minor trade disputes. Oil is bought by the highest bidder no matter who sticks bases in the middle-east.
Quote:
The big question is, as fossil fuel depletion proceeds, for how long will the Chinese be capable of maintaining an expanding economy? The present trends would appear to suggest that the US economy is on the verge of imploding, whilst the Chinese economy is growing fast.
Imploding? A bit of hyperbole one might imagine for describing a potential recession.
Posted: Wed Mar 05, 2008 1:47 pm Post subject: Re: Pentagon concern at China's rising military muscle
Quote:
But buying guns is way cooler than buying solar panels.
Especially if you're one of those very lucky few who are making lots of money off of the military industrial complex and all of the wars it perpetuates. $8 billion contracts for Northrup Grumman are very good news if you own a large number of shares in Northrup Grumman. The American taxpayer is footing that bill...
Why buy solar panels? Used properly, they will make us commoners use less and less of that very profitable oil, which we need a shortage of to justify an expensive war over. Why, we just can't let the poor in the middle east develop their own wealth either, or else they might start getting their own notions of what freedom is, so that wealth must be destroyed periodically so they are perpetually poor and willing to fight with us, and attack us so that we can justify even more expensive 'anti-terrorism' measures to loot the American public with through the tax system...
Guns, drugs, and oil... the Triangle Trade of the 21st century.
Quote:
It is obvious that as China's economy expands its military expenditure will also expand. It is equally obvious that increasing military power and ability to project that power, will bring China into conflict with the US, especially over access to middle-east oil.
The big question is, as fossil fuel depletion proceeds, for how long will the Chinese be capable of maintaining an expanding economy? The present trends would appear to suggest that the US economy is on the verge of imploding, whilst the Chinese economy is growing fast.
That conflict could indeed be a nuclear one if it arises.
China is currently promoting consumption of internal combustion engined automobiles to increase consumer spending and grow its economy, many places even banning bicycles from the roads. Most in China cannot afford a car.
Electric vehicles would do the same thing for China's middle class and for the U.S., but with less environmental impact, no oil use for fuel, and much less consumer spending and growth... thus both countries shun them.
A war over resources will get the economies of both growing again if they someday implode. The 'leaders' must keep enriching themselves at all costs...
It would be nice if the people of both countries started going after their leaders for their wastefulness. Even $59 billion on China's part is absurd, but the U.S. is in no more of a worse state because of it(China has nukes and would use them if it wanted to).
The Pentagon should instead be concerned with how it will dismatle itself. The world doesn't need them; they are a parasite on society. _________________ The unnecessary felling of a tree, perhaps the old growth of centuries, seems to me a crime little short of murder. ~Thomas Jefferson
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