( Kanwa news Feb.04 Beijing) Ever since the end of the Cold War, there have been indications that China has made the adjustments in its strategic defence arrangements. Asked about this statement, the Chinese military scholars felt that the new strategic defence policy focused on the defence both on land and on the sea with relatively more weight on the latter. It is stressed that the various threats to China should be differentiated for the primary from the secondary. Among them all, the threat of the independence of Taiwan tops the list.

In terms of the defence arrangements on land, it is proposed that the efforts should be made to enhance the control of the border line on the basis of the operational policy of "positive defence". A certain size of military forces should be maintained on the border line and a quick-action mechanism should be enhanced. In the major remote areas close to the border, a certain size of quick-action troops should also be deployed. All these efforts are intended to keep the enemy out of China.

With the above understanding, the Chinese army has successively purchased from Russia a number of the advanced T80U tanks, paratroops-used vehicles, and TOR-M1 air defence missiles etc.. ( Kanwa Digest news John Wu)

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