China launches military website to remove criticism over the transparency

Thursday China's normally secretive Defense Ministry implemented www.mod.gov.cn website targeting to dampen overseas criticism over its military transparency and the build-up of its armed forces. 

China's military that is considered to be the world's largest reported budget spending has grown by double digits over recent years. However, the secrecy of the country's political system makes its Asian neighbors and Washington wary about its military intentions.

As it’s said in a welcome message "The aim of the Defense Ministry's website is to let the outside world know about China's defense policies ... and show off the good image of the military's powerful, cultured and peaceful forces."

The site has also an English edition (eng.mod.gov.cn/). It has been long mooted, and comes at a time when China has been ramping up investment in its military to introduce new high-tech weapons.

The home page of the Defense Ministry's website is heavy on text, and many of the pictures concentrate on showing soldiers holding children, helping in disaster relief or attending political meetings. A small picture of President Hu Jintao, wearing a tailored olive green version of the uniform jacket the late Mao Zedong made famous as a "Mao suit," sits near the top of the home page. The site is split into sections with links for "Military Building," "Military Education" and "Defense Technology," among others.

The English version has slightly more strident pictures, and a link telling people about China's peacekeeping operations.

Country's counterparts worry that its actual defense expenditure is more than the $70 billion reported for this year, which is dwarfed by the Pentagon's budget of more than $500 billion. However, China ensures its military modernization affects no country.