(ReclaimingAmerica.net) – Communist China is giving its military budget a new boost to reach $224 billion, meaning that its defense spending has doubled over the past decade.
China’s defense budget represents slightly over a quarter of America’s, which is $858 billion for the 2023 fiscal year.
However, the new 7% increase in Chinese military spending comes amid heightened fears that under President Xi Jinping, Beijing could attempt to invade and conquer Taiwan. This self-ruling island is an informal US ally.
Meanwhile, China has also been involved in a “collusion with Russia” over the latter’s ongoing war on Ukraine, The New York Post writes in a report.
The new 7% increase in the Chinese military budget is the same as in 2022. China’s Premier Li Keqiang announced it during a session of the rubber-stamp parliament of the ruling Chinese Communist Party.
In his speech, the second-highest-ranking person in the Chinese Communist regime praised the “major achievements” of the nation’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA).
The report notes that the PLA is the world’s largest military in numerical terms and has the world’s biggest navy and the largest aviation in the Indo-Pacific region.
“We [remain] committed to the party’s absolute leadership over the people’s armed forces,” Li declared.
“The people’s armed forces intensified efforts to enhance their political loyalty, to strengthen themselves through reform, scientific and technological advances, and personnel training and to practice law-based governance,” he added.
The outgoing premier of Communist China lauded the PLA’s border defense and its role in disaster rescue and enforcing the regime’s draconian zero-COVID policy.
“We should consolidate and enhance integration of national strategies and strategic capabilities and step up capacity building in science, technology, and industries related to national defense,” Li stated.
In 2021, China’s official defense spending amounted to 1.7% of the country’s official Gross Domestic Product, whereas in the US, the share was 3.5%.
The report points out that up until a few years back, the Chinese military budget would grow by double-digit percentages.
Nonetheless, the new increase is “still notable” since the regime in Beijing is dealing with growing government debt and the adverse economic effects from its “brutal prolonged lockdown” during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Meanwhile, the PLA has sought to boost its overseas military bases in Djibouti in East Africa and Cambodia in Southeast Asia. The latter is close to the disputed South China Sea.
The growing concern among Western nations that Communist China would try to capture a free and democratic Taiwan by force has led to increased US weapon sales to the island, which has extended its draft.
“[China has followed an] overall policy for the new era on resolving the Taiwan question and resolutely fought against separatism and countered interference,” Chinese Premier Li said in his Communist Party assembly speech.
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