Increase in China's military budget is threat: Nakatani

Japan Policy & Politics, June 3, 2002

TOKYO, May 29 Kyodo

Japanese Defense Agency chief Gen Nakatani on Tuesday met with British Defense Secretary Geoff Hoon and expressed concern over China's growing military budget, Defense Agency officials said.

''The increase of military budget by more than 10% in over 10 years is a major threat and a problem,'' Nakatani was quoted as saying, referring to China's military build-up.

Nakatani also expressed a positive attitude on Japan's participation in U.N. peacekeeping forces, under a new peacekeeping operation law enacted last year.

Nakatani told Hoon that ''it would be a good idea'' for Japan's Self-Defense Forces to participate in U.N. peacekeeping missions but gave no specifics on the type of peacekeeping operation Japan has in mind.

The two defense ministers agreed to boost exchanges between the two nations in the field of peacekeeping operations and measures to counter biological weapons, the officials said.