All posts by LLD - 139. page

In March 2014, the Guangzhou Public Opinion Research Center conducted telephone interviews on a sample 2,000 urban residents, collecting opinions on China’s national security and the growth in military spending.

81 percent of respondents believed the long run existence of the terrorism threat; 14 percent disagreed, and 5 percent found it "hard to say." On China’s defense and military spending, 44 percent believed that China’s military spending is "not much." 16 percent thought it was "too much," and 40 percent believed it was "just enough." 92 percent of the interviewees agreed that China’s "national defense capabilities must be commensurate with its economic development," and only 3 percent hold the opposite view. The poll also showed that 73 percent of the respondents supported the recent decision of the Chinese government to place a fiscal budget on military spending, with only 14 percent not supportive and 13 percent "hard to say."

According to the Guangzhou Public Opinion Research Center, the poll covered 23 provincial capital cities and four municipalities directly under the central government. It sampled over 2,000 urban residents of different genders, ages, occupations, and education levels.

Source: China Youth Daily, March 31, 2014
http://zqb.cyol.com/html/2014-03/31/nw.D110000zgqnb_20140331_5-04.htm

From March 24 to 28, the People’s Liberation Army’s General Political Department (GPD) held a meeting in Beijing on protecting secrets and also a training session. The meeting stressed that the current battle between espionage and counter-espionage is complicated and grim. The GPD should have a strong sense of urgency and responsibility, and should not slack off.

The training focused on conveying instructions from the upper-level authorities; analyzing the current situation of the work of protecting secrets; inviting officials and experts from the government, the PLA Committee for Protecting Secrets, and National Defense University; and demonstrating anti-theft technologies.

Source: People’s Liberation Army Daily, March 31, 2014
http://www.chinamil.com.cn/jfjbmap/content/2014-03/31/content_71655.htm

People’s Liberation Army Daily recently published a series of commentaries about the 1894 Sino-Japanese War that took place 120 years ago, giving an unusually objective evaluation of the Japanese military reform at the end of 19th century. That interaction prompted the continuous bloody conflicts between the two neighboring countries. The commentaries called for the People’s Liberation Army commanders to study the humiliating defeat of the Qing Empire at the hands of the Japanese. Analysts believe that the move is to warn of the effect of corruption within the military.

The commentaries said that the discipline and dedication of the Japanese army enabled them to defeat the Qing Dynasty’s Pei-yang Fleet.

One article stated: "(The) Chinese navy’s equipment, including the warships’ tonnage and the fire power, were indeed no less than those of the Japanese navy. … Quite a number of officers and even commanding officers of the fleet fostered ridiculous arrogance. Foreign military professionals who were paid and invited at a high price to instruct the navy were often subjected to ridicule and mockery. That was in stark contrast to the spirit of tireless learning of the Japanese Navy."

Analysts say these articles aimed to reveal the following facts: a lot of challenges that the Qing Dynasty’s army faced are the same as those the PLA battles today: nepotism, factional strife, and corruption.

A military expert at the Shanghai University of Political Science and Law said, "If such phenomena continue, the PLA is bound to be defeated if a military conflict between China and Japan were to occur."

Tensions between China and Japan have deteriorated to the worst level since the end of the Cold War. Both sides repeatedly send planes and ships near the Diaoyu Islands in the East China Sea.

One article on PLA Daily stated, "In a sense, the 1894 War has not ended."

One retired officer in Beijing said, "What our army is facing is clearly what the Qing government failed to deal with. This is exactly the reason why Chairman Xi Jinping urged the PLA senior officers to get rid of their stereotyped thinking."

The Pei-yang Fleet was a result of the Qing Dynasty "Self-Strengthening Movement." On the eve of the Sino-Japanese naval battle in 1894, the Pei-yang Fleet had about the same strength as the Japanese Navy in military hardware, but it was still defeated.

Source: Xinhua, March 24, 2014
http://news.xinhuanet.com/2014-03/24/c_119903160.htm