PENTAGON WARNS AGAINST CHINA'S MILITARY BUILDUP: JAPANESE DAILY
Central News Agency
2005-06-06 17:24:05
Tokyo, June 6 (CNA) The United States is increasingly growing uneasy with China's military buildup, with the Pentagon positioning it as one of the worst threats together with international terrorism in an annual assessment, the Sankei Shimbun reported Monday.
In a report datelined Washington, the Japanese daily newspaper said that in its annual assessment of China's military capabilities that will be published soon, the Pentagon lists China's fast military expansion and international terrorist attacks as being on the same level under "worst threats."
According to the report, the Pentagon made the assessment based on the following arguments: China increased the number of short-range missiles aimed at Taiwan in the Nanjing military region, purchased more advanced jet fighters from Russia, deployed a larger number of fast-response troops to deal with contingencies in the Taiwan Strait, and stepped up military drills to counter U. S. military planes and ballistic missiles.
China's military capabilities are expanding at a rate that exceeds the tolerance of the U. S., the report said, adding that U. S. Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld told a group of U. S. reporters June 1 that it is imperative to pay close attention to China's military buildup.
Rumsfeld said that the Pentagon's annual assessment of China's capabilities shows that China is spending more than its leaders acknowledge, expanding its missile capabilities and developing advanced military technology, according to an Associated Press (AP) report June 4.
The AP story quoted Rumsfeld as saying that China now has the world's third-largest military budget, behind the U. S. and Russia.
(By Mike Chang and Flor Wang)
ENDITEM/mw
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