(AFP/Getty Images)
China’s Military Spending Set to Exceed the Rest of Asia Combined
China’s military spending will double by 2015, swelling it to more than the combined defense budgets of the rest of the Asia Pacific, according to a new report. The news is expected to intensify anxiety among China’s neighbors and rivals.
According to global research group ihs, by 2015, Beijing’s military budget will double from its 2011 amount of us$119.8 billion to us$238.2 billion. That is more than the us$232.5 billion spent by Asia’s 12 chief military powers, including India and Japan. By 2015, China’s military budget will be four times greater than that of second-place Japan.
Sarah McDowall, head of ihs Global Insight’s Asia Pacific desk, said the anticipated annual rate of increase of 18.75 percent will “intensify concern among various governments” in the Asia Pacific region.
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