The Pentagon's Top 4 Concerns On China's Growing Military Might

China has increased its military budget in the past year by nearly 18 per cent in 2009. (Reuters: stringer Shanghai)

China's Growing Military Might: Top 4 Concerns For The Pentagon -- Anna Mulrine, Christian Science Monitor

China continues to increase spending to grow its already considerable military, and top Pentagon officials continue to watch the developments carefully.

In a report issued this week, the Department of Defense for the first time directly accused China’s military of using cyberattacks to spy on US networks.

In this arena and others, “China’s military buildup shows no signs of slowing,” said David Helvey, deputy assistant secretary of Defense for East Asia, who presented the congressionally mandated report on the state of China’s military activities.

Here are Pentagon officials’ top four concerns as they carefully monitor the growth of China’s military.

1. Frequent cyberwarfare attacks, other espionage efforts

China has long been accused of engaging in cyber attacks and espionage on US networks, but for the first time the US military directly attributed some of those attacks to its counterparts in China, the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

“In 2012, numerous computer systems around the world, including those owned by the United States government, continued to be targeted for intrusions, some of which appear to be attributable directly to the [Chinese] government and military organizations,” Mr. Helvey said during a Pentagon briefing this week.

The report points to cyberespionage, along with other activities – with the aim of bolstering China’s military advantages:

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My Comment: Only 4 concerns?

Many Retired Chinese Military Officers Are Broke And Desperate

Military veterans demonstrated in Beijing on May 20; over 1000 ex-servicemen gathered before the General Political Department Bureau for Letters and Calls. Veterans from Chengdu, Lanzhou, Jinan, Beijing, Guangzhou Military Regions came to petition for their pensions and promised veterans'employment. (Human Rights Campaign in China)

Retired Military Officers, Broke and Desperate, Protest in Beijing -- Epoch Times

Around a thousand retired military officers from all over China gathered in Beijing’s heat on May 20, appealing to the regime for their pensions and veterans’ employment; they were soon rounded up and thrown into a makeshift “black jail,” which operates outside the law, for the night.

Protests by retired military officers are an embarrassment for the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), so groups are monitored strictly in an effort to prevent mass petitions or demands for their rights. However, they continue to organize demonstrations despite official efforts to silence them.

Veteran officers from Chengdu, Lanzhou, Jinan, Beijing, Guangzhou, and Shenyang, protested in front of the Central Military Commission General Political Department, calling attention to the appalling living conditions caused by failed veterans’ policies.

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My Comment: I am surprised by this report. These Chinese military officers would also be members of the Communist party .... and to be treated like this by their own government and Party is unprecedented. I guess China is changing even more quickly than I thought, and I am one who has been there at leas at 30 times since the mid 1980s .... including even living there in 1988-1989.

Chinese Soldiers Serving In Tibet Are Suffering Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder

Members of the Chinese People's Armed Police Corps (CPAP) conducting anti-terrorism exercise to stimulate the situation where it may have to handle terrorist attack. Photo from Chinese Military Review

Chinese Troops Suffering Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In Tibet -- The Telegraph

The battle to keep Tibetans under control is inflicting severe psychological damage on Chinese armed police, an internal training document has revealed.

The leaked 25-page training manual was given to members of the People's Armed Police charged with keeping order in Tibetan areas of Sichuan province.

Among the advice it offers are ways of combating depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) for paramilitary troops involved in recent atrocities.

One section is titled: "How should you deal with flashbacks of brutal episodes?" It specifically refers to an incident in Aba county on March 16, 2011 when a Tibetan monk named Phuntsok self-immolated in a market and to a protest on March 18, 2009 in Seda and Ganzi counties where Chinese armed police, confronted by protesting Tibetans, fired into the crowd.

"For some of the troops who joined these operations, there may be brutal scenes that reappear in their minds, causing nightmares and insomnia. These are called flashbacks, a symptom of PTSD," the manual states.

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My Comment: Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder is a universal condition that has probably been with us since the beginning of time .... the only difference is that we now have a better understanding of what causes it.