Article Posted on : - Apr 24, 2014

BEIJING (BNS): China's apex military body, the Central Military Commission (CMC), has urged for maintaining tightened secrecy in defence-related matters amidst an "austere and complicated" situation.

Pointing at the widespread use of computer networks, mobile communications and other technologies, the CMC, in a document approved by President Xi Jinping, has said that the secrecy is needed to ensure that the Chinese army is capable of joining a war and winning it.

The document called on Chinese military staff "to have a clear understanding of the austere and complicated situation facing the protection of military secrecy, to always remain sober-minded and to spare no effort to keep secrets safe," the official Xinuha news agency said quoting a report in the Wednesday edition of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Daily.

The military's sense of responsibility and awareness of its adversaries should be promoted, the document said.

Running a commentary on the new document, the PLA Daily further said, "The country is faced with an increasingly complicated security environment and intensified competition in armed forces, which have fueled rivalries in the scramble for information.

"There is no reason to be too optimistic about current secrecy measures, as problems still exist in certain fields in the army.

The military secrecy is of vital importance to the army's survival, development and battle outcomes," it noted.

The Chinese military has always maintained stringent security over its programmes, modernisation efforts and defence expenditure despite continuous criticism from the West, including the US.

The Asian giant's growing power projection and aggressive stance over regional and littoral issues in recent times has further alarmed the international community.