The Chinese government Tuesday published the country's 9th defense white paper, and the document's title "China's Military Strategy" is solid proof that China is serious about honoring its commitment to peaceful development and its promise to improve military transparency.
Since 1998, China has published a defense white paper every two years and every new document has shown a higher degree of transparency than the last.
For anyone who is interested in flipping through these documents, the trend is obvious: In the 2006 defense white paper, China made its nuclear strategy public; in the 2008 document, the country revealed for the first time the statistics of its defense expenditures in the three decades since the start of the reform and opening-up; and the 2013 white paper revealed the designation of the Chinese Army's combined corps and the missile armament of the Second Artillery Corps.
This year's nearly 9,000-word-long paper is the first to focus specifically on strategy, and discusses the most sensitive questions concerning China's military and security policy and its core.
As many military experts would agree, laying bare its strategic intentions represents a very bold move for a country which has pledged to be more transparent about its military capabilities and war preparedness.
For Western media organizations seeking to play up the ill-founded notion that China will extend its military reach possibly to the detriment of regional stability, they should be reminded that China is entitled to adjust its military strategy in accordance with the latest developments that may pose a security threat, since the same is happening everywhere.
They should also take heed of the fact that China has played an irreplaceable role in maintaining regional stability and has been steadfast in pursuing peaceful development.
Unlike world powers that adopt preemptive military strategies, emphasize preventive intervention and take the initiative in attacks, China takes a strikingly different path by following the principles of defense, self-defense and post-emptive strikes.
China "will not attack unless we are attacked, but we will surely counterattack if attacked," the white paper states. Such a candid expression demonstrates China's growing confidence in its military prowess, but more importantly underscores its peaceful intentions.
However, it will be hard to convince China-demonizers that the country is peace-loving in nature, since they always turn a blind eye to the country's track record on preserving peace and ignore the fact that China needs a peaceful and stable international environment to sustain its economic growth.
But why bother? The best policy is honesty and China has been honest in carrying out its promise on military transparency and on peace. Time will show that China will never deviate from its path of peaceful development and will not pursue military expansion.
