Source: AFP
Robert Saiget
Chinese President Hu Jintao on Tuesday urged the navy to prepare for military combat, amid growing regional tensions over maritime disputes and a US campaign to assert itself as a Pacific power.
The navy should "accelerate its
transformation and modernisation in a sturdy way, and make extended
preparations for military combat in order to make greater contributions
to safeguard national security," he said.
Addressing the powerful Central Military Commission, Hu said: "Our work must closely encircle the main theme of national defence and military building."
His comments, which were posted in a statement on a government website, come as the United States and Beijing's neighbours have expressed concerns over its naval ambitions, particularly in the South China Sea.
Several Asian nations have
competing claims over parts of the South China Sea, believed to
encompass huge oil and gas reserves, while China claims it all. One-third of global seaborne trade passes through the region.
Vietnam and the Philippines have accused Chinese forces of increasing aggression there.
In a translation of Hu's comments,
the official Xinhua news agency quoted the president as saying China's
navy should "make extended preparations for warfare."
The Pentagon
however downplayed Hu's speech, saying that Beijing had the right to
develop its military, although it should do so transparently.
"They have a right to develop
military capabilities and to plan, just as we do," said Pentagon
spokesman George Little, but he added, "We have repeatedly called for
transparency from the Chinese and that's part of the relationship we're
continuing to build with the Chinese military."
"Nobody's looking for a scrap
here," insisted another spokesman, Admiral John Kirby. "Certainly we
wouldn't begrudge any other nation the opportunity, the right to develop
naval forces to be ready.
"Our naval forces are ready and they'll stay ready."
State Department spokesman Mark
Toner said: "We want to see stronger military-to-military ties with
China and we want to see greater transparency. That helps answer
questions we might have about Chinese intentions."
Hu's announcement comes in the wake of trips to Asia by several senior US officials, including President Barack Obama, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
US undersecretary of defence
Michelle Flournoy is due to meet in Beijing with her Chinese
counterparts on Wednesday for military-to-military talks.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao last
month warned against interference by "external forces" in regional
territorial disputes including those in the South China Sea.
And China said late last month it
would conduct naval exercises in the Pacific Ocean, after Obama, who
has dubbed himself America's first Pacific president, said the US would
deploy up to 2,500 Marines to Australia.
China's People's Liberation Army,
the largest military in the world, is primarily a land force, but its
navy is playing an increasingly important role as Beijing grows more
assertive about its territorial claims.
Earlier this year, the Pentagon
warned that Beijing was increasingly focused on its naval power and had
invested in high-tech weaponry that would extend its reach in the
Pacific and beyond.
China's first aircraft carrier
began its second sea trial last week after undergoing refurbishments and
testing, the government said.
The 300-metre (990-foot) ship, a
refitted former Soviet carrier, underwent five days of trials in August
that sparked international concern about China's widening naval reach.
Beijing only confirmed this year
that it was revamping the old Soviet ship and has repeatedly insisted
that the carrier poses no threat to its neighbours and will be used
mainly for training and research purposes.
But the August sea trials were met
with concern from regional powers including Japan and the United
States, which called on Beijing to explain why it needs an aircraft
carrier.
China, which publicly announced
around 50 separate naval exercises in the seas off its coast over the
past two years -- usually after the event -- says its military is only
focused on defending the country's territory.
