China to boost military budget by about 10% in 2015March 4, 2015 - 11:44 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - China's military budget will rise by about 10% in 2015, an official said, according to BBC News. Fu Ying, spokeswoman for China's annual parliament session the National People's Congress (NPC), gave the "rough" figure and said it was in line with overall spending growth. A formal announcement will be made on Thursday, March 5, when the NPC opens. China has seen several years of double-digit defense spending increases. It is the world's second-highest military spender, but remains far behind the U.S. Last year, China's defense spending rose 12.2% to $130bn. In comparison, for the fiscal year 2016 U.S. President Barack Obama has requested a budget of $585bn. China says the spending is required to modernize the People's Liberation Army - the world's largest standing military. It is pouring investment into hi-tech equipment such as submarines and stealth jets, the BBC says. It has also been investing in naval forces, including an aircraft carrier. Recent media reports that a second was being built were swiftly deleted. China's neighbors are closely watching its military investment. In recent years Beijing has taken a more assertive stance on maritime territorial disputes with both Japan and South East Asian nations, leading to a rise in regional tensions. In response, Japan has begun increasing its military budget, as has India - which has a disputed land border with China. U.S. officials also fear that China understates its current military spending, suspecting the real figure could be considerably higher. Fu said China had not forgotten lessons from history - "those who fall behind will get bullied". "Our country will achieve modernization, of which national defense modernization is an important part," she added. "This requires a certain guaranteed amount of funding." Related links: Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Mirzoyan says meeting with Bayramov was “constructive” At the moment, Ararat Mirzoyan said, there is no basis for additional comments. OSCE vows support for Armenia “in all three directions of security” Achieving stable peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan remains a priority of the OSCE, said Ian Borg. 151 detained as civil disobedience campaigns continue in Yerevan Citizens have been blocking streets in the Armenian capital, demanding Nikol Pashinyan’s resignation. France welcomes Armenia-Azerbaijan meeting in Almaty France has welcomed the new round of negotiations between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan. |