White Paper on Defense Allows Better Appreciation

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Friday, December 13, 2002

White Paper on Defense Allows Better Appreciation

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The newly-released white paper on "China's National Defence in 2002'' will help the international community gain a more objective and comprehensive understanding of the country's defence policy and proposition, a Ministry of Defence senior official said Thursday.

The paper expounds China's perspectives on the world security situation and presents the new contents of China's national defence and armed force development, said Zhang Bangdong, deputy director of the ministry's Foreign Affairs Office.

"This is the first white paper issued by the Chinese Government in the wake of the 16th National Congress of Communist Party of China and it is of major significance,'' Zhang said during a briefing specially held for foreign military attaches in China, three days after the white paper's release.

About 70 foreign military attaches and deputy military attaches from 45 countries attended the briefing.

Zhang said the new white paper is greatly changed compared to the previous two white papers to facilitate the further understanding of the nature and essence of China's national defence policy, adding the contents are more transparent.

Since the issue of the 1995 white paper "China: Arms Control and Disarmament,''the Chinese Government has issued another two white papers of China's national defence in 1998 and 2000.

Zhang said in the new white paper, China's national interests have been summarized for the first time and are taken as the basis of formulating its national defence policy.

The basic contents of the policy are elaborated on in aspects of defence objectives and tasks, and the military strategic guidelines in the new period are systematically explained, Zhang said.

"The defensive nature of China's defence policy is not some empty talk, rather something justified with substantive contents in various aspects,'' he said.

Zhang said "to stop separation and realize complete unification of the motherland'' was one of the basic goals and tasks of national defence that "fully demonstrates the aspirations and determination of the Chinese people to realize complete unification of the motherland and to falter all attempts of separation.''

In the new document, the sixth part is about international security co-operation, among which anti-terrorism co-operation is newly-added.

"It indicated China is also a victim of terrorism,'' Zhang said.

He said it makes clear the consistent position of the Chinese Government in opposing terrorism and its stance of addressing both its symptoms and causes.

The paper stressed that in fighting terrorism, it is necessary to address both its symptoms and causes, and adopt comprehensive measures, especially in solving the questions of development, narrowing the North-South gap and ending regional conflicts.

The paper was compiled in several parts -- the security situation, China's national defence policy, the armed forces, the national defence building, the armed forces building, the international security co-operation and arms control and disarmament. (China Daily news)

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