Beijing: In a speech days after warning that the nation was threatened by a U.S.-led campaign of "containment, encirclement, and suppression of China," China's leader Xi Jinping called for "more quickly elevating the armed forces to world-class standards."
In order to "systematically upgrade the country's overall strength to cope with strategic risks, safeguard strategic interests, and realize strategic objectives," China must maximize its "national strategic capabilities," according to Xi on Wednesday.
The official Xinhua News Agency reported on his remarks to delegates in the ceremonial parliament who represented the People's Liberation Army, the military wing of the in power Communist Party, and the paramilitary People's Armed Police.
Also Read: Zelensky explains his motivation for holding a crucial Donbass city.
Xi issued a number of calls, including ones to quicken the development of scientific and technological self-reliance, strengthen strategic capabilities in emergency fields, strengthen industrial and supply chain resilience, and increase the "capability of safeguarding national security" of national reserves.
The plan outlined by Xi fits in with a number of existing national strategies, such as the "Made in China 2025" initiative to establish China as a global leader in 10 key industries, ranging from integrated circuits to aerospace, and a long-running campaign for civilian-military integration in the economy.
Also Read: Michigan has become the latest state to outlaw TikTok on devices used by the government
In addition, Xi stressed the importance of "achieving the goals for the centenary of the PLA in 2027," the year by which, according to some American observers, China intends to be able to militarily annex self-governing Taiwan, an ally of the United States.
The centenary objectives have been outlined by China in largely ambiguous terms, such as increased "informatization" and bringing the PLA up to "world-class standards."
China needs to build "a strong system of strategic deterrent forces, raise the presence of combat forces in new domains and of new qualities, and deeply promote combat-oriented military training," according to a speech Xi gave last year.
The world's largest standing military, with 2 million members, the largest navy by number of ships, and the largest missile and aviation forces in the Indo-Pacific are all maintained by China, whose defense budget has roughly doubled over the past ten years.
His most recent remark followed a speech he gave on Monday to delegates at the rubber-stamp National People's Congress, in which he expressed Chinese frustration in unusually blunt terms with U.S. technological access restrictions and its support for Taiwan and regional military alliances.
Xi was quoted by the official Xinhua News Agency as saying, "Western countries led by the United States have implemented all-around containment, encirclement and suppression of China, which has brought unprecedented grave challenges to our nation's development.
Also Read: A bill calling for the withdrawal of all American troops from Syria was rejected by US lawmakers
Ned Price, a spokesman for the State Department, responded by saying that Washington wants to "coexist responsibly" within the international economic and political system and has no plans to subjugate China.
"Containing China is not the point of this. It is not the intention to repress China. The goal here is not to impede China, Price stated in Washington. We desire healthy competition that "doesn't veer into that conflict" and is fair.