China projected defense spending growth of 7.1% this year, the fastest pace in three years as President Joe Biden moves to strengthen the U.S.’s position in the Indo-Pacific region.
Military expenditure is expected to rise to 1.45 trillion yuan ($229 billion) in the coming year. The figure was released Saturday in the Ministry of Finance’s annual report at the start of the National People’s Congress in Beijing.
“Government at all levels must give strong support to the development of national defense and the armed forces, so unity between the military and government and between the military and the people will remain rock solid,” Premier Li Keqiang said in his annual work report.
“We will enhance military training and combat readiness,” he added, saying it would be “firm and flexible” in operations and stressing the need to safeguard China’s “sovereignty, security and development interests.”
A Bloomberg calculation of the latest numbers shows spending for this year will actually rise 7%.
The rise in defense spending came as China set its lowest economic growth target in more than 30 years, a sign the housing slump, stringent COVID controls and global risks will continue to curb demand. Beijing will target gross domestic product growth of around 5.5% this year.
