Skip to main content

Advertisement

Advertisement

‘Fight? We are ready’: China will not be bullied, says its defence minister

SINGAPORE — Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe on Sunday (June 2) ramped up the rhetoric in the ongoing trade war between China and the United States, saying that his country will not be bullied.

Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe delivering his speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on June 2, 2019.

Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe delivering his speech at the Shangri-La Dialogue in Singapore on June 2, 2019.

Follow TODAY on WhatsApp

SINGAPORE — Chinese Defence Minister Wei Fenghe on Sunday (June 2) ramped up the rhetoric in the ongoing trade war between China and the United States, saying that his country will not be bullied.

“If the US wants to talk, we will keep the door open. If they want a fight, we will fight to the end,” said the general at the Shangri-La Dialogue, annual security summit, in Mandarin.

“As what the general public of China say these days: Talk? You are welcome. Fight? We are ready. Bully us? No way.”

His retort came a day after Acting United States Defence Secretary Patrick Shanahan, in a speech at the summit, slammed “actors” who seek to undermine the international order through activities such as influence operations and militarising disputed areas.

While he did not name these “actors”, the US has previously made similar allegations against China.

Both countries have imposed extra tariffs on billions of dollars of each others’ goods in tit-for-tat measures as their trade war shows no signs of abating.

The two sides are also embroiled in a technological dispute after the US put Huawei, a Chinese telecommunications firm, on a trade blacklist, effectively barring American firms from doing business with it.

In a 50-minute plenary session titled “China and International Security Cooperation”, General Wei vowed that China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) will “resolutely take action and defeat all enemies” should “anybody risk crossing (the line)”.

“The PLA has fought many battles and is not afraid of sacrifice. In the face of aggression, coercion or hardships, it has stridden forward from victory to victory,” he said. “The more severe the pressures and difficulties are, the stronger and braver the Chinese people become.”

“The PLA has no intention to cause anybody trouble, but it is not afraid to face up to troubles,” he added.

Asked about the Huawei issue during a question-and-answer session, General Wei said that China is “opposed” to the attempt of other countries to put sanctions on private companies.

He described Huawei as a “private company” and “not a military company”. “Do not think that because the head of Huawei used to serve in the army, then the company that he has built is part of the military? That does not make sense because ex-servicemen (cross into the private sector) after their retirement from the military,” he said.

General Wei spoke about how “some” had been over-dramatising theories about “the China threat” while having a “hidden agenda of their own”. The senior Chinese leader did not name who he was referring to.

He said: “Over the years, some have been recklessly hyping up, exaggerating and dramatising theories about the China threat partly due to the lack of understanding of China’s history, culture and policies.

“But more likely due to misunderstandings, prejudice, or given a hidden agenda of their own.”

Stressing that the Chinese people “know only too well” the value of peace and the cruelty and destructiveness of war, he added: “China sticks to the path of peace development. China shall follow the path of peaceful development, which is a solemn commitment to the people of China and the world.”

This position had been written into both the constitutions of the Communist Party of China and People’s Republic of China (PRC), he said. “If this is not convincing enough for some people, then we don’t know what they would believe.”

General Wei said that over the past 70 years since the founding of the PRC, China has “never provoked a war or conflict”, nor has it invaded other countries or “taken an inch of land from others”.

“In the future, no matter how strong it becomes, China shall never threaten anyone, seek hegemony, or establish spheres of influence,” he said. “History has proven and will continue to prove that China would not follow the beaten path of big powers — seeking hegemony when it grows strong. Hegemony does not conform to China’s values and national interests.”

China’s military strategy, he said, abides by the principles of self-defence.

“We will not attack unless we are attacked, and we will surely counter-attack if we are attacked. China develops its military entirely for self-defence,” he said.

General Wei reiterated China had “never bullied or preyed on others”. “We shall not let others bully or prey on us either.”

This position is consistent with how the country used to develop nuclear capabilities on its own in the face of a nuclear threat, he pointed out.

In this light, China’s defence expenditure is “reasonable and appropriate”, he said.

Data by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute had suggested that China’s military spending rose 5 per cent in 2018 to reach US$250 billion (S$343 billion), which accounted for 14 per cent of the world’s military spending. China’s is second to the US, which upped its military spending by 4.6 per cent — the first growth since 2010 — to reach US$649 billion last year.

General Wei on Sunday also took a question about the bloody crackdown on protests around Beijing’s Tiananmen Square 30 years ago. In a rare acknowledgement of the events of June 4, 1989, he said it was the Chinese government being “decisive” in stopping political “turbulence”.

It was "political turmoil that the central government needed to quell, which was the correct policy", he said. "Because of this, China has enjoyed stability, and if you visit China you can understand that part of history."

Related topics

Shangri-La Dialogue China US-China trade war

Read more of the latest in

Advertisement

Advertisement

Stay in the know. Anytime. Anywhere.

Subscribe to get daily news updates, insights and must reads delivered straight to your inbox.

By clicking subscribe, I agree for my personal data to be used to send me TODAY newsletters, promotional offers and for research and analysis.