By Xinhua writer Yan Hao
BEIJING, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- China's Defense
Minister Liang Guanglie stressed on Monday that the absolute control under the
Communist Party of China (CPC) has guaranteed the country's armed forces have
achieved landmark progress in the past six decades.
Liang, a State Councilor and also member of the
Central Military Commission (CMC) as a full general, made the remark during an
exclusive interview with Xinhua less than ten days leading to a grand military
parade scheduled on China's National Day.
The minister said a solid ideological and political
leadership by the CPC is the greatest difference between the People's Liberation
Army (PLA) and the armed forces of Western countries, by which the Party's
troops have endured various tests and shown loyalty, bravery and services to the
people.
The PLA has achieved leaping upgrades in its
defensive combat abilities to realize that the armed forces could effectively
safeguard the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity, Gen. Liang said.
Liang emphasized that the PLA could not make the
achievements without several rounds of disarmament and its internal reforms to
optimize the military resources and command systems since the People's Republic
of China was founded in 1949.
The PLA once had 6,000,000 uniformed members. The
most high-profile cut was conducted by late CMC Chairman Deng Xiaoping who made
a surprising decision in 1985 to reduce ranks by 1,000,000, mostly from the army
and military schools.
After the latest cut in 2005, the PLA now has 2.3
million servicemen, although it remains the world's most populous armed force.
Gen. Liang said that after consistent efforts by
scientists and researchers as well as China's improving industrial capacities,
the PLA's arsenal has been equipped with all major weapon systems on the land,
in the sea and air just like other major military powers.
"We now have military satellites, advanced jets, new
main battle tanks, sophisticated warships and subs," Liang said, adding that
some of the weaponry have caught up with world-leading standards.
After nearly 60 years of construction and
development, China has set a strategic target to realize basic defense and
military modernization, he said.
Achieving this objective, the Army's mobility level
will be upgraded to give greater regional capabilities, and the Navy will be
capable of both a strong coastal defense and certain measures for blue water
combat, Liang said.
The Air Force will be transformed from a fleet that
could only provide homeland air defense to an aerial power capable of a
combination of offensive and defensive operations, and the Second Artillery
Corps, China's strategic missile troops, will become a truly efficient force
with both nuclear and conventional striking power, he said.
The military parade on Chang'an Avenue in front of
the Tian'anmen Square on Oct. 1 will probably be the best footnote to Liang's
remarks.
According to Lt. Gen. Fang Fenghui, general director
of the parade, 52 types of new weapon systems developed with China's own
technologies will be showcased to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding
of the PRC.
China will unveil for the first time the PLA's
airborne early warning and control (AEWC) aircraft, unmanned aerial vehicles
(UAV) and other novel military hardware which have seen active service.
With a distinctive theme of "Made in China" to be
showcased by the military parade, the Defense Minister said the Chinese defense
industry has been also upgraded from copying Russian made weapons in 1950s and
1960s to a self-reliance on designing and manufacturing from the 1970s onwards.
Another progress is the improved heritage of national
defense mobilization which has played a unique role and advantage in the PLA's
service in peace time and in missions to help civilians in emergencies, Liang
said.
The two events that impressed the 68-year-old
minister most were the PLA's engagement in fighting a severe flood disaster in
1998 and the devastating earthquake in Sichuan Province last year.
"The troops and even many veterans were quickly
mobilized and gathered to fight the flood at the front line in spite of danger
to life," Liang said.
"I also witnessed very moving moments during the earthquake relief work when quake survivors saved by the PLA soldiers expressed their sincere appreciations," he said.
Warplanes fly over Tian'anmen Square in National Day rehearsal
BEIJING, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Some 100 warplanes, flying in 12 echelons, roared over the world-renowned Tian'anmen Square in central Beijing on Monday morning, in a rehearsal
for the forthcoming parade to celebrate the 60th founding anniversary of the
People's Republic of China (PRC).
It was the only rehearsal for the military aircraft to fly across the sky above Tian'anmen Square ahead of the parade on Oct.1, according to Air Force sources. Full story
More than 2,000 overseas Chinese to join National Day celebrations
BEIJING, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese government has invited more than 2,000 overseas Chinese to take part in the National Day celebrations, according to the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office of the State Council.
Those invited are from more than 120 countries and regions, and are expected to arrive here late this month. They will watch the military parade in Tian'anmen Square on Oct. 1 and take part in other celebrations. Full story
Special Report: 60th Anniversary of Founding of PRC
