China's Red Army Turns 80

The military history of Communist China begins with the Nanchang uprising on the first of August 1927, when Nationalist troops rebelled and linked up with Communist leader Mao Zedong.

An armed struggle between the Communists and the Nationalists, under the leadership of Chiang Kai-shek, began. Backed by much of the people, the Communists won the struggle in 1949 and the Nationalist Kuomintang troops were forced to flee to Taiwan, despite their military superiority.

For a long time, the People's Army was likened to a military museum because of its outdated weapons system. But in the 1990s, Beijing started investing in military modernisation. Aided by the world's highest economic growth, Chinese defence spending began to increase.

Unfair criticism

It soon reached two-figure percentages, attracting criticism from the United States. China was accused of arming itself unnecessarily, despite a largely peaceful state of affairs. But Professor Eberhard Sandschneider, a China expert at the German Society for Foreign Policy, thinks such criticism was unfair:

"If you look at China's defence spending and compare it to the US', then there is still a dramatic difference in the US' favour," he said. "if you think about it. According to the maximum figures, China spends about a hundred billion dollars a year on modernisation its defence system, whereas the corresponding figure for the US is about five hundred billion dollars."

Beijing has insisted that the modernisation of the military is partly being undertaken so that China can meet international requirements. Among the five member states of the United Nations Security Council, China is the one with the most blue helmet soldiers deployed around the world.

Peaceful aims

The Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao in a statement reiterated the idea that China has been trying to promote that its motives are entirely peaceful : "We have a defence policy which only serves defence. The limited armed troops that China has serve only to ensure the country's security, independence and sovereignty."

By "sovereignty", the premier means Taiwan above all. A 2005 anti-secession law threatens the island republic with military attack if it dares declare its independence. Such an incident would draw the US into a war, as Washington has pledged to protect Taiwan in such a case.

China is practically surrounded by the US. Washington is allied with Japan, supports the nuclear power India, nurtures military co-operation with Thailand, is improving its relations with Vietnam and has military bases in Central Asia.

So there is no mystery as to why China's security policy has to focus on its rivalry with the US.

Internal strife

There are also internal issues. The army has 2.2 million soldiers and corruption is mushrooming.

Calls for political reforms in the army are becoming louder and bolder. As the 17th party conference approaches, the debate is more and more acrimonious.

The famous dissident Chen Ziming explained what was needed: "First, the Communist Party should retreat from the organisation of the army. Secondly, it should be made very clear to whom the army is responsible. The army should be answerable to the state's institutions and leading politicians."