Japan smears China's defense expenditure via conspiracy theory to cover re-militarization: spokesman

Japan smears China's defense spending by peddling conspiracy theory in order to cover up its re-militarization drive, a Chinese Ministry of National Defense spokesman charged on Thursday.

Senior Colonel Zhang Xiaogang, the spokesman, made the statement at a press conference in Beijing when commenting on the recent remarks by Japan's Defense Minister Shinjiro Koizumi to once again publicly question the transparency of China's defense expenditure. Koizumi claimed that Japan would invest in new operational capabilities such as drones and AI in a "transparent" manner to adapt to the changing nature of conflict.

In March, China denounced Japan for hyping up China's defense spending.

"China's defense expenditure is open and transparent. We regularly release information on China's total defense budget, as well as its scale, composition and usage every year in accordance with law. China actively participates in the U.N. military expenditure transparency mechanism and has submitted annual military expenditure reports for the previous fiscal year to the U.N. since 2008. China's defense expenditure has always been reasonable, moderate and restrained, with its share of the GDP remaining below 1.5 percent for a long time," Zhang said.

""In contrast, Japan, as a defeated nation in World War II, has seen its defense budget grow rapidly for 14 consecutive years, with defense spending surging to two percent of its GDP, and the government plans to further raise this ratio to 3.5 percent. Its per-capita defense spending is more than three times that of China," he said.

"As the Chinese saying goes, 'the innocent are innocent, and the guilty are guilty.' The Japanese side has long smeared China's defense expenditure by peddling conspiracy theory in a bid to divert attention, mislead public opinion, and cover up its ambition and actions in re-militarization. It is Japan that truly owes the world a clear explanation: as neo-militarism grows into a greater threat, where is Japan heading for?" said the spokesman.

Japan smears China's defense expenditure via conspiracy theory to cover re-militarization: spokesman

Lebanon's Information Minister Paul Morcos said on Wednesday that he hoped a new round of Lebanon-Israel negotiations mediated by the United States, currently underway in Washington, would result in a full Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory and the release of prisoners.

This new round of Lebanon-Israel talks is expected to run for three days starting Tuesday, with officials from both sides in Washington for the week, U.S. media reported.

In an interview with China Global Television Network (CGTN), Morcos said the direct talks with Israel represent a rare display of autonomy and independence for Lebanon.

"This is a track that reflects the autonomy and the independence of the state. This is maybe, not to say the first time, maybe amongst the rare occasions where the state is holding the decision by itself,” he said.

Morcos also detailed what the Lebanese government aims to achieve through the talks.

"First thing is to maintain the ceasefire and then to have an Israeli withdrawal from all Lebanese territories, the release of prisoners, and the settlement of disputed areas of conflict," he said.

According to the minister, if a ceasefire can be agreed and is observed, reconstruction will be the government's top priority for maintaining stability and speeding up recovery.

"The main thing after withdrawal, you mean, is reconstruction. For us, the rights of those displaced come first and this should be done with assistance of the Lebanese state, but also with the assistance of the international community, because this is not the liability of Lebanon. This war wasn't the war that Lebanon has chosen, and the international community is keen, I think, to help in this issue. This cannot happen without having a permanent ceasefire and stopping the Israeli attacks,” Morcos said.

Hope that Lebanon-Israel talks will secure Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon: Lebanese official