Chinese President Xi Jinping orders military to prepare for war
Chinese President Xi Jinping has ordered military commanders to "concentrate on war preparations" as tensions rise over the future of Taiwan and the South China Sea.
Last weekend, China Central Television (CCTV) published a statement by the country's leader Xi Jinping when he inspected the Southern Theater Command (one of five theater commands of the Chinese People's Liberation Army) in Guangdong province.
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| Chinese President Xi Jinping |
"It is necessary to strengthen... and focus on preparing to engage in a war. We must increase our training readiness, joint exercises and confrontation training to improve our military capabilities and prepare for war.
"We need to anticipate all complicated situations and make emergency plans," Chinese President Xi Jinping told officers of the southern theater command. The southern theater command is responsible for monitoring activities in the South China Sea.
Xi Jinping stressed the importance of preparing for war and going to war, Xinhua news agency reported.
Xi Jinping's statement comes amid a war of words between Beijing and Washington. China is upset with the US sanctions on its military for buying Russian weapons and Washington's support for Taiwan.
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On October 25, at the opening ceremony of the Xiangshan Forum, Defense Minister Wei Fenghe emphasized: "China will take decisive actions, regardless of the cost, to protect its territorial integrity and repel attempts to separate Taiwan from China."
Relations between China and the United States continued to deteriorate last month when the United States announced that a Chinese destroyer came close to ramming the USS Decatour while it was conducting freedom of navigation in the South China Sea.