China, when asked by US diplomats about it's dramatic military buildup, said that it's purely for defensive purposes. Seems to be I recall the same sort of comments from another country some 65 or 70 years ago. That one cost about 12 million lives.
Here are some numbers on China's "purely defensive" force.
Minimum Military Enlistment Age: 18 Years Old
Available Military Manpower: 342,956,265
Total Military Personnel: 7,024,000
Active Frontline Personnel: 2,255,000
Compare that to Germany during the first 3 years of the war
1939: 4,722,000+
1940: 6,600,000+
1941: 8,154,000+
The numbers for Hitler's Wehrmacht include all auxillary units such as police and fire fighters. So, China's defensive force in peace time is as large or larger than Germany was fielding during active war years. Shall we compare some other numbers?
How about armored vehicles.
Current reported numbers in China:
Armor: 13,200
Germany during the same 3 years of the war:
1939: 1362
1940: 2586
1941: 5870
I suppose we could go on an compare airforce, navy, etc., but I think you get the idea. I'd take China's claim to a purely defensive force with a grain of salt.
Oh, by the way, China spent 81 billion dollars on it's military in 2005. That was billion with a 'b'
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