Henry C.K. Liu
The following is an excerpt from a Chinese White paper:
White Paper--China's National Defense
Information Office of the State Council, the P. R. China
July 27, 1998
China's defense policy has mainly the following aspects:
-- Consolidating national defense, resisting aggression, curbing armed subversion, and defending the state's sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity and security. These are the basic objectives of China's defense policy, as well as the main tasks the Chinese Constitution has entrusted to China's armed forces. China spares no effort to avoid and curb war, and to solve international disputes and questions left over by history through peaceful means.
However, as long as hegemonism and power politics still exist, a country must have the capability to defend its sovereignty, unity, territorial integrity and security by military means. The modernization program of China's national defense work is entirely for self-defense, and arises from the need to safeguard the country's modernization drive and security. The size of China's armed forces is suited to the needs of defending the country's security and interests. China builds and consolidates its national defense independently and through self-reliance.
-- Subordinating national defense work to, and placing it in the service of, the nation's overall economic construction, and achieving the coordinated development of these two kinds of work. This is China's long-term basic policy for its work in defense. The modernization of the national defense of a country requires the support of its economic and technological forces; and the modernization level of national defense can only be improved gradually along with the increase of the country's economic strength.
The Chinese government insists that economic construction be taken as the center, that defense work be subordinate to and in the service of the nation's overall economic construction and that the armed forces actively participate in and support the nation's economic construction. While concentrating its efforts on economic construction, the state also endeavors to improve its national defense work and to promote a coordinated development of the two.
-- Implementing the military strategy of active defense. Strategically China pursues the defensive policy featuring self-defense and gaining mastery by striking only after the enemy has struck, and adheres to the principle: "We will not attack unless we are attacked; if we are attacked, we will certainly counter-attack."
China possesses a small number of nuclear weapons, entirely for meeting the needs of self-defense. China upholds the principle of self-defense by the whole people and the strategic concept of people's war, and works hard to enhance the defense consciousness of the whole people, perfect the defense mobilization system and intensify the building of the reserve force for defense.
On the basis of its existing weaponry, China carries forward and develops its fine traditions. It seeks to adapt to profound changes in the world's military sphere, and makes proper preparations for defensive combat in the situation where modern technology, especially high technology, prevails.
Full document: http://www.china-embassy.org/Cgi-Bin/Press.pl?wparms