Warships attached to a combat support ship flotilla of the navy under the PLA Southern Theater Command steam in formation to conduct alongside replenishment-at-sea during a comprehensive replenishment training exercise on September 22, 2023. Photo:China Military

The recently released US report on China’s military development disregards facts, fabricates stories, uses vague rhetoric, misinterprets China’s defense policy and military strategy, and hypes the non-existent “Chinese military threat,” according to a Chinese Defense Ministry spokesperson.

Senior Colonel Wu Qian made the remarks in a statement on Wednesday.

The report, titled “Military and Security Developments Involving the People’s Republic of China 2023” and released by the US Department of Defense, wildly speculates on China’s military development in nuclear, space, and cyber domains, and interferes in China’s internal affairs on the Taiwan question, Wu said.

“We express strong dissatisfaction and resolute opposition to this, and have lodged solemn protests with the US,” the spokesperson said.

China insists on a path of peaceful development and follows a defense policy that is defensive in nature. It has not initiated a single war or occupied an inch of another country’s land since the founding of the People’s Republic of China more than 70 years ago. In contrast, the war-addicted US only had 16 years without a war in its over 240 years of history, operating more than 800 overseas military bases in more than 80 countries and regions, Wu said. “Facts have proven that the US is the fundamental source of chaos in international order, the behind-the-scenes manipulator of world turmoil and the greatest destroyer of regional peace and stability.”

China has to build a strong military in the face of a severe and complex international security environment, and the Chinese military will never remain idle while the country’s sovereignty, security, and development interests are at risk, and will never allow anyone or any force to invade or split China, Wu said.

The development of the Chinese military aims to deter the threat of war, defend its own security, and maintain world peace. It does not target any specific country or goal, he said. 

Wu stressed that China always maintains its nuclear forces at the minimum level necessary for national security and is always committed to maintaining global strategic security, while the US is playing with nuclear double standards and are making excuses for expanding its own nuclear arsenal and maintaining military hegemony.

Taiwan’s return to China is part of the international order following World War II, which is clearly stated in the Cairo Declaration and the Potsdam Proclamation. The one-China principle confirmed by UN General Assembly Resolution 2758 has long become an international consensus. The collusion between the US and the Democratic Progressive Party authority are the root cause of changing the status quo in the Taiwan Straits, as they are the real troublemakers for the tensions in the region, Wu said.

China taking necessary measures to safeguard national territorial sovereignty is legitimate, reasonable, and lawful, and the US has no rights to interfere, Wu said.

“We urge the US to cease strengthening US-Taiwan military ties and illegally arming the island of Taiwan under any name or in any form, stop creating factors of tension in the Taiwan Straits, and stop indulging and supporting ‘Taiwan independence’ secessionist forces in their attempt to resist reunification through force,” the spokesperson said.

The Chinese People’s Liberation Army has the confidence and ability to thwart any external interference and “Taiwan independence” secessionist scheme, and achieve the complete reunification of the country, Wu said.

Wu said that military relations are an important part of China-US ties, and China values military relations and maintains candid and effective communication with the US through military diplomatic channels. 

The difficulties and obstacles currently faced by military relations are entirely created by the US side, but the US pretends to be ignorant, doing things that harm China’s security interests on the one hand, and claiming it wants to manage crisis and strengthen communication on the other hand, Wu said. “There is no such logic in the world,” he said.

Over 20 years, the US has stubbornly adhered to its erroneous perception of China, publishing such reports filled with lies and clichés year after year, a move that harms others and the US itself as the reports mislead the world, Wu said.

“We urge the US to stop fabricating false narratives, correct its wrong perception of China and promote the healthy and stable development of relations between the two countries and the two militaries with a sincere attitude and practical actions,” the spokesperson said.

Global Times