China has significantly increased its national defense budget to $275 billion. This increase is approximately US$25 billion more than the previous year, reflecting the pace of modernization of the country’s armed forces. Chinese Premier Li Qiang announced this allocation in his work report presented at the National People’s Congress (NPC).
Why does China show limited despite increasing defense expenditure?
According to the report, China’s defense spending is still considered relatively limited by many key standards. This includes important indicators such as share of defense budget in gross domestic product (GDP), per capita defense expenditure and defense expenditure per soldier, on the basis of which China’s military expenditure appears relatively low compared to other big countries.
How much did China increase its defense spending in the last few years?
This is the fourth consecutive year that China has increased its defense budget. Last year, the national defense budget for 2025 was increased by 7.2 percent to US$249 billion, an increase of US$17 billion compared to 2024. In 2024, China plans to increase its defense budget by 7.2 percent to about US$232 billion (1.67 trillion yuan), more than three times that of India.
What is the increasing pressure on India and neighboring countries?
China’s defense expenditure, which is second only to the US, has been rising steadily over the years. This increase is putting immense pressure on India and other neighboring countries to increase their defense budgets despite economic challenges. Concerns are being raised over the rapid pace of China’s military modernization, including the construction of aircraft carriers, rapid construction of advanced naval vessels, and development of modern stealth aircraft. Given this large-scale military modernization, China’s defense budget figures are cast with skepticism.
Why did China change its GDP growth?
Also, China has reduced its economic growth (GDP) target for this year to between 4.5 to 5 percent. This decision has been taken in view of the increasing trade tariff dispute with the US, the deepening global crisis after the US-Iran war and the challenges facing the domestic economy. For the last three years, China has been setting its GDP growth target at around 5 percent, but due to domestic economic pressures such as the decline in the real estate market and rising unemployment, this time for the first time it has been reduced to the range of 4.5 to 5 percent.