Chinese PLA Spokesman: Modernizing our Military Is Essential to our National Modernization

At the second session of the 14th National People's Congress, Chinese PLA and People's Armed Police Forces spokesman Wu Qian said in a statement that national security is closely related to domestic well-being and that China has experienced a marked growth in military industry and its defense capabilities over recent years. He said that strengthening China's military is imperative for ensuring world peace and stability, particularly considering today's complex geopolitics, and he explained that modernization of China's military is part of China's national modernization. He also said that this year's 7.62% increase in China's military budget will be used to implement new projects, better logistics, improve troop living and working conditions, invest in new technologies, develop new weapons, increase the military's overall combat effectiveness, and carry out more peacekeeping and humanitarian missions. In addition, he said that China's military spending is fully transparent in accordance with domestic and UN regulations and that China's military expenditures relative to GDP are lower and more efficient than countries like the United States. Wu's statement was posted to the New China TV YouTube channel on March 10, 2024.