Beijing boosts military prowess

Beijing wants to transform the world's largest standing army into a fully modernized fighting force

(CNN) -- A newly set-up military research unit says much about Beijing's determination to pursue defense modernization -- and the armed forces' growing clout.

Diplomatic sources in Beijing said the leadership of President Jiang Zemin had earlier this year approved the establishment of an inter-departmental organ to coordinate military research and development.

It is made up of top cadres and experts from the Commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (COSTIND), the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE).

The R&D outfit will work together with People's Liberation Army (PLA) units including the General Armament Department to produce cutting-edge technology and hardware.

This development is significant for several reasons. CAS and CAE are civilian rather than military units.

And while COSTIND's clients are mostly PLA units, it is classified as a department under the State Council, or central government.

The new R&D body testifies to the PLA's long-standing effort to draw upon the resources of civilian units to serve military goals.

The functions and status of the CAE and CAS have been boosted by some recent appointments.

Former Shanghai mayor Xu Kuangdi is CAE's new head, and President Jiang's son, U.S.-trained engineer Jiang Mianheng, is CAS's vice-president.

After all, it is an open secret that the publicized PLA budget -- 166 billion yuan for 2002, or 17.6 per cent over last year's figure -- represents only about one third of total military expenditure.

'Civilian budgets'

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Western defense analysts have pointed out that funds for the development of top-notch weapons often come from the "civilian budgets" of research units or State Council departments.

This is despite the assertion by Finance Ministry officials at the on-going National People's Congress (NPC) that there is no question of a special or hidden budget for the army.

At the NPC, numerous generals have called upon the whole country -- and not just PLA-related units such as the people's reserves -- to make more contributions to national defense.

According to the Vice-Commander of the Beijing Military Region Zang Wenqing, "defense is the responsibility of the [entire] nation, and not just that of certain individuals, departments or units."

General Zang added: "Private enterprises, joint ventures, and wholly foreign-owned companies should also shoulder commensurate levels of defense-related responsibilities."

Commander of the Heilongjiang Military District, General Li Heng, reiterated Chairman Mao Zedong's ideal of the "integration [of the needs] of war and peace."

"Defense needs must be fully taken into account in economic construction," the official China News Service quoted General Li as saying at the NPC.

He said the possibility of war and mobilization must be considered when civilian authorities are planning for highways, bridges, ports and airports.

Underpaid

Chinese leaders defended PLA's budget boost, saying Chinese soldiers were underpaid

Immediately after Finance Minister Xiang Huaicheng disclosed the size of the PLA's budget boost last week, the generals mounted a concerted defense of the spending hike.

They pointed out that compared to the rest of Chinese, the 2 million-odd soldiers were underpaid and living in harsh conditions.

"Just adding 1 yuan worth of food for the soldiers every day means having to spend 1 billion-odd yuan more," said Vice-chief of the General Logistics Department General Sun Zhiqiang.

Few neutral observers would query the point that, even considering hidden sources, the PLA's budget is relatively modest compared to those of the U.S., Japan, India, and even Taiwan.

Moreover, Beijing is justified in insisting that China has the same right as other nations to develop an army that is commensurate with its economic and geopolitical clout.

The problem, however, is the PLA's lack of transparency -- and that it is not accountable to supervisory units such as parliamentary bodies.

Because the army reports only to the secretive Central Military Commission (CMC) of the Communist party -- and is often deemed an adjunct of the party's dominant faction -- the generals could exert a less than wholesome influence on domestic and foreign affairs.

Military analysts say it is significant that after a period of relative reticence, senior officers have become much more active in the run-up to the critical 16th Congress of the Communist Party.

Ambitions

PLA battle tanks on maneuvers near a military base in Luoyang, central China's Henan province. The PLA has over 7,000 main battle tanks in its arsenal

After being CMC Chairman for 12 years, President Jiang has been able to rein in the generals' ambitions mainly through two means.

One is to buy them off with hefty budget boosts year after year.

The other is to appoint his protégés to senior positions. For example, the current top commanders, Generals Zhang Wannian and Chi Haotian, owed their promotion to Jiang.

The same can be said of the three officers tipped for elevation at the 16th congress: Generals Cao Gangchuan, Guo Boxiong, and Xu Caihou.

Despite his reported intentions to retire, the 75-year-old Jiang played a key role in the latest round of the reshuffles of regional commanders.

For example, the newly named Commander of the Beijing Military Region, Zhu Qi, reportedly earned Jiang's praise for his successful organization of the military parade at Tiananmen Square in 1999.

The centerpiece of the big show was to highlight Jiang's status as the equal of Mao and late patriarch Deng Xiaoping.

Hidden intentions

The publicized PLA budget represents only about one third of total military expenditure

Largely at Jiang's insistence, the generals have recently kept quiet over hot diplomatic issues ranging from American military actions in Central Asia to U.S. arms sale to Taiwan.

The top brass's outspokenness at the NPC, however, could portend an aggressive bid for more political influence.

For example, the generals want to retain the military's traditional share of about 20 percent of the seats of the party's ruling Central Committee.

Top PLA officers including Generals Zhang and Chi have been vociferous in urging Jiang to remain CMC chief despite his well-publicized plans to give up the positions of party chief and state president.

"The top brass is after a quid pro quo," said a Western diplomat in Beijing.

"In return for their backing of Jiang and members of the president's Shanghai Faction, the generals hope the PLA will be rewarded with bigger budgets and more say in domestic and foreign policy."

The generals' preponderance could also hamstring Jiang's heir-apparent and the likely next CMC chief, Vice-President Hu Jintao.

Because of his lack of a national stature and power base, Hu may be forced to rely on the generals' support in times of crises such as a massive peasant riot -- or unexpected developments in Taiwan.