China must boost military spending to prepare for possible confrontation; Top Generals

• The tops generals of China stated that China must boost military spending to prepare for a possible confrontation with the US, in an unusual acknowledgement of the risk of a clash between the world’s two largest economies.

• The two generals who are members of the Central Military Commission led by President Xi Jinping made the comments during the annual national legislative session in Beijing. China’s top uniformed officer, CMC Vice Chairman Xu Qiliang said that the country needed to brace for a “Thucydides Trap”, an inevitable conflict between the rising power and an established one.

• On Friday Xu stated, “the most important thing is internal unity and cohesion and improvement of overall capabilities. If you are strong, you will have long-term stability, as well as invincibility”.

• The reference to “border disturbances” made by Xu in his statement may be an allusion to China’s deadly clash with India last year, as well as territorial disputes in the South and East China seas.

• President Xi Jinping has vowed to make China a great military power, pledging to complete the modernization of the armed forces by 2035 and build a world class military capable of winning wars across all theaters by 2050.