China hikes defence budget by 13 per cent
04 Mar 2011
China has raised its defence budget for the current year by 12.7 per cent, resuming its usual double-digit growth in military spending after a one year pause in 2010, when it announced a modest growth of 7.5 per cent.
The figures were announced by Chinese parliamentary spokesman Li Zhaoxing at a press conference on Friday.
Briefing on the eve of the annual session of Chinese National People's Congress, at which the Communist Party will outline its five-year plan, he said military spending in 2011 would increase to 601.1 billion yuan ($91.5 billion), which marks a hike of 12.7 per cent from 532.1 billion yuan ($81 billion) last year.
The official budget will fund "appropriate" hardware spending and wage rises for the People's Liberation Army – the largest in the world – said Li.
The largely rubber-stamp parliament, which opens on Saturday, will discuss the country's social and economic aims for the next five years.
The rise in spending is likely to add to concerns among rival powers in the regions surrounding China about the increasing might of the communist power.