Tuesday, March 29, 2005

China "stepping up drills over Taiwan"

TOKYO (Reuters) - China is rushing to modernise its military equipment, alignment and training to deal with any conflict in the Taiwan Strait,including the use of force, a think tank linked to Japan's Defence Ministry says.

"With the possibility of the use of force against Taiwan and prevention of U.S. intervention in mind, China has been frequently conductingoffensive training," the National Institute for Defence Studies said in an annual report on Monday.China sees Taiwan as a renegade province that must be reunited with the mainland -- by force if necessary.The think tank's report said the future of the military balance between China and Taiwan was becoming unclear as China moves ahead withthe modernisation of its military.

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