China marks Army Day with warning for Taiwan

Beijing, Aug 1: China marked ''Army Day'' today with a warning from its defence minister that the mainland would never tolerate Taiwan independence, but he stopped short of directly threatening the use of force against the self-governed island.

Cao Gangchuan also vowed that China's military modernisation would continue, in remarks carried in the Liberation Army Daily that were thick with political rhetoric but lacking specifics on new arms purchases or weapons expenditure.

''(We will) never tolerate Taiwan independence, and will never permit Taiwan independence splittists to use any name or method to separate Taiwan from the motherland,'' Cao said at a banquet to mark the 79th anniversary of the People's Liberation Army.

''We will uphold the central government's policy direction on the Taiwan question; with the utmost sincerity and hardest work will push for the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations and strive for the prospect of peaceful reunification,'' Cao said.

''At the same time, we uphold the sacred duty to defend national sovereignty and territorial integrity and security,'' he said in language typically used by top Chinese leaders on Taiwan.

China views self-ruled democratic Taiwan as a wayward province that must be unified with the mainland, by force if necessary.

The two have faced off since 1949 when Nationalist forces fled to the island after losing a civil war to the Communists.

Cao said China would push the modernisation of its forces, especially its capacity for self development of weapons.

''We must strengthen the building of weaponry, focusing on developing advanced arms and pay attention to the proper use of these weapons to raise the forces' fighting strength,'' he said.

The United States, obliged by its Taiwan Relations Act to help the island defend itself, has repeatedly urged China to explain its military build-up, worried it will alter the balance of regional power.

China's defence expenditure is officially projected to be 35 billion dollars in 2006, up almost 15 per cent from the previous year, but many foreign experts believe the real figure is significantly higher.

In an annual defence white paper issued today, Japan's defence ministry also urged China to disclose military data to allay neighbours' fears about Beijing's defence build-up.

The Liberation Army Daily, decked out in red headlines for Army Day, carried only two pictures of military hardware in the whole edition -- one of a fighter jet based on a 1950s Soviet design, and the other of antiquated anti-aircraft guns.

The rest of the pictures were of happy soldiers chatting or looking at revolutionary photographs and a beaming Cao on the front page toasting foreign military attaches.

Reuters