Chinascope – Page 873

Xinhua: New Missiles Deployed Aiming at U.S. Targets

Xinhua recently reported that the Chinese military deployed “a small number" of the latest Dongfeng-21D missiles. The Dongfeng-21D is a land-based long range missile with mobile launch capabilities. The new missile is considered the world’s first anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) that aims at some U.S. Pacific military airports. However, the lack of field tests is a primary problem for the new system. Many analysts expressed doubts about whether the Dongfeng-21D can truly attack moving targets at sea. The report suggested that a land-based defense strategy may be more effective than that of arming a full-size ocean-going navy. The author also expressed the belief that the United States should maintain its superior under-water capabilities as a strategic balance.

Sources:

Xinhua, March 8, 2013

http://news.xinhuanet.com/cankao/2013-03/08/c_132218525.htm

Yahoo Military News, March 9, 2013

http://mili.cn.yahoo.com/ypen/20130309/1647749.html

Briefings | | March 12, 2013 | Defense/Military

Bureau of Statistics: February CPI Reached Ten-Month High

The Chinese National Bureau of Statistics recently released the official CPI (Consumer Price Index) number for February. The CPI increased by 3.2 percent, which is the highest in ten months. Among the different components of the CPI formula, the food price index increased six percent, which included a 10 percent increase in fresh vegetables. The prices of rice and of fruit increased by 5.1 percent and 3.7 percent, respectively. Some experts expressed the belief that the Chinese New Year was the main cause of the increase in the February CPI. However, the numbers still caused widespread concern among economists about inflation. The Chinese government injected a large amount of currency into the economy in the past twelve months in order to deal with the economic downturn. The CPI calculation does not include housing prices.

Sources:

National Bureau of Statistics, March 9, 2013

http://www.stats.gov.cn/tjfx/jdfx/t20130309_402878616.htm

Xinhua, March 10, 2013

http://news.xinhuanet.com/fortune/2013-03/10/c_124437884.htm

Briefings | | March 12, 2013 | Economy/Resources

BBC Chinese: Chinese Leaders Praised China’s Political System and Vowed not to Adopt Western Model

BBC Chinese published a report that discussed the statements that two Chinese leaders made during the recent National People’s Congress. Wang Yang, Member of the Politburo of the Communist Party of China, attended the meeting held by the delegates of the National People’s Congress from An Hui Province. Wang praised the development China has made in recent years and attributed China’s success to the system and path that it has adopted. Wang said that China is developing rapidly and peacefully; he said the Western world is concerned about it and has used a number of methods in an attempt to slow down China’s growth. On March 8, Wu Bangguo, the departing Chairman and Party Secretary of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, asserted that China will consistently adopt the system that is represented by its people and will not follow the political model of the Western world. In 2009, Wu also denied the possibility that China would ever allow multiple parties.

Source: BBC Chinese, March 8, 2013
http://www.bbc.co.uk/zhongwen/simp/china/2013/03/130308_china_politics_wangyang.shtml

Briefings | | March 11, 2013 | Government/Politics

Mainland Expert: Military Spending Growth Not Enough

China’s defense budget for 2013, released on March 5, shows an increase of 10.7 percent over last year. Although the increase has been widely reported in foreign media and some members of the U.S. Congress are concerned, some mainland observers pointed out that China’s military spending growth is moderate.

Ma Gang, a director at China’s National Defense University, believes a country’s military spending mainly is a function of the needs to safeguard national sovereignty and carry out international responsibilities, as well as its economic development. In recent years, with the growing sovereignty and security challenges, the responsibility of defending national interests, the obligations for international security as a permanent member of the UN Security Council, and steady economic development, it is a normal phenomenon for there to be a double digit increase in military spending. Ma said that there is still a gap between the growth in China’s military spending and China’s actual needs. Future military spending growth will still be a function of national security and economic development.

Since the 1990’s, China’s annual defense spending has generally maintained double-digit increases. In 2010, it dropped to 7.5 percent, but double-digit increases resumed in 2011.

Source: People’s Daily, March 8, 2013
http://military.people.com.cn/n/2013/0308/c1011-20720222.html

Briefings | | March 8, 2013 | Defense/Military

People’s Daily: U.S. Pushing Global “Cyberspace Arms Race”

On March 8, People’s Daily published an article written by Yang Jian, a scholar at the Shanghai Institute for International Studies, in response to a U.S. security company’s report accusing the People’s Liberation Army unit in Shanghai of engaging in cyberwarfare against American corporations, organizations, and government agencies.

"The U.S. institutions, media, and politicians recently joined hands to stir up the so-called incident of China’s cyberspace attacks on the U.S., provoking distrust in cyber security among the major powers. The logic and thinking process (behind this accusation) are worrisome. The U.S. is guiding global cyber security to a wrong conclusion."

"The U.S. strategic papers are filled with the wrong idea of seeking superpower status in cyberspace. The U.S. was the first to name allies and potential enemies in their network security strategy documents; the first to set up a network force to develop network operational plans; and the first to introduce the concept of deterrence in cyberspace. The U.S. strategy is to make enemies, cause the deterioration of relationships between the countries, and undermine the basis and atmosphere of international cooperation on cyber security. Advocating cyber warfare destroys the peaceful nature of the Internet. With other countries following the lead of the U.S., a worldwide destructive view of cyber security has developed. In the past two years, South Korea, India, NATO, Germany, Britain, Japan, and Russia have one by one established network forces or developed plans for armed forces of network security. The global arms race on cyber space is about to begin."

"The U.S. has taken a lot of trouble to look for the shadow of the Chinese military. Actually it hopes to implement outdated and harmful cyber security concepts by making an enemy and tracking the evidence. So far, only the U.S. government has initiated cyber attacks against nuclear facilities and network firewalls in countries. In the current round of the so-called China’s cyber attack incident, the U.S. again has provided a wrong presentation, which validates its revengeful actions based on the so-called ‘facts’ recognized by its own domestic organization. The U.S. already played this trick when launching the Iraqi war. The act of making up excuses for its unilateral actions, if spread in cyberspace, will bring catastrophic consequences."

Source: People’s Daily, March 8, 2013
http://military.people.com.cn/n/2013/0308/c1011-20718565.html

Briefings | | March 8, 2013 | US-China Relations

Wu Guoguang: Xi Jinping’s Reversal of the Course, Will China’s Transition be Peaceful or Marked with Bloodshed?

Cheng Xiaonong: U.S.-China Strategic Relations Have Crystallized

Xinhua Commentaries: “Exposing the Three Major Political Deficits of the U.S.”

The CCP’s Performing Arts Troupes in the U.S.

Xinhua: New Missiles Deployed Aiming at U.S. Targets

Bureau of Statistics: February CPI Reached Ten-Month High

BBC Chinese: Chinese Leaders Praised China’s Political System and Vowed not to Adopt Western Model

Mainland Expert: Military Spending Growth Not Enough

People’s Daily: U.S. Pushing Global “Cyberspace Arms Race”

Articles

Topics