Parade displays commitment to peace: China Daily editorial

The military parade to be held on Oct 1 to mark the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China will be the 16th of its kind, and the biggest ever, according to the organizers, with some advanced weapons to be displayed for the first time.

This of course has led to speculation in some other countries about the purpose of the parade.

Yet there is nothing untoward about this display of the country's military strength. The spectacle is not intended as a threat to any other country.

It is an event to honor the military forces of the country on an occasion when their contribution to the founding of the nation should be remembered. It is a muster that offers reassurance to the Chinese people that the profound suffering that had to be endured before the founding of the PRC — because of relentless foreign invasions and domestic turmoil — will not be repeated.

For a country as big as China, a strong military is as important as a strong constitution is for a person to be healthy. For a country as large as China, a strong military is a must for its national defense and for the protection of its national interests worldwide.

The parade will show people that China is no longer the "sick man of Asia". It has the ability to stand up for itself should the need arise. It will show the world that the Chinese nation has the means to safeguard its rejuvenation.

There are those in other countries who are trying to hype this as evidence of a "China threat". But Chinese leaders have reiterated on many occasions that China's rise is and will be a peaceful one, and what China pursues is the building of an international community with a shared future.

That China has become one of the countries to have sent the largest number of peacekeeping troops among all UN Security Council members since it took part in such missions in 1990 speaks volumes about the contribution China makes to world peace.

That China always calls for dialogues and negotiations for the settlement of whatever disputes it may have with its neighbors or other countries is evidence that although China has an increasingly strong military, it pursues mutually satisfactory peaceful solutions instead of trying to impose its will by force.

Those trying to portray the parade as more than it is are the usual suspects who would prefer to see China weak and exploitable.