BEIJING (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 09th May, 2019) The Chinese Ministry of Defense lodged representations with the United States for publishing a report in which the Pentagon detailed China's latest military developments.
On May 2, the US Department of Defense released its 2019 China Military Power Report. The document said that China allegedly sought to increase its military footprint abroad and establish additional military bases in various parts of the world.
"The published report ... skews facts and makes irresponsible statements in relation to China's defense policies. China's armed forces strongly protest these [statements] and have already lodged representation with the United States," the Chinese Defense Ministry said in a statement.
The ministry also said that the annual US report has tarnished US-Chinese relations for years and called on the North American country to cooperate in developing amicable bilateral relations between the two countries.
"We call on the American side to objectively view China's defense expansion, to stop publishing these reports and to take concrete steps toward advancing the development of stable US-Chinese relations," the ministry said.
China has been steadily building up and modernizing its military strategic capabilities since the 1990s. In 2018, China's military spending budget amounted to over $170 billion.
