China-Defense Ministry/Japan
China-Defense Ministry/Japan
Dateline : March 18, 2026/File
Location : China
Duration : 2'47
FILE: Beijing, China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of Tian'anmen Rostrum, Chinese national flag, ornamental column
Beijing, China - March 18, 2026 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
2. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Jiang Bin, spokesman, Ministry of National Defense:
"We have released the information regarding the specifics of China's 2026 defense budget, making public its size, composition, and allocation and leaving no room for doubt. China's defense spending accounts for less than 1.5 percent of its GDP, which is significantly lower than that of major military powers like the U.S., and is also below the global average and the NATO benchmark of over 2 percent of GDP. The increase in our defense budget is characterized by a reasonable, moderate, and restrained growth, which is solely meant to meet the needs of safeguarding China's sovereignty, security, and development interests, and of maintaining world peace and stability. The stronger the Chinese military is, the more secure the world would be."
FILE: Beijing, China - Date Unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
3. Tian'anmen Square, Chinese national flag
4. Aerial shot of traffic on Chang'an Avenue
Beijing, China - March 18, 2026 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
5. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) Jiang Bin, spokesman, Ministry of National Defense:
"When relevant Japanese politicians hype up China's defense budget and the so-called China threat, it is nothing more than a trick of 'a thief-crying-stop-thief' so as to find excuses for Japan's hidden ambition of military expansion. Due to its history of launching wars of aggression, Japan should be completely disarmed and shall not maintain industries that would enable it to re-arm for war, in accordance with such legally-binding international instruments as the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation, and the Japanese Instrument of Surrender. It must be pointed out that Japan's defense budget has grown for 14 years in a row and increased over 60 percent in the past five years, reaching 2 percent of its GDP. The country's per capita military spending is more than three times that of China. The Japanese side is making drastic efforts to break away from the constraints of its pacifist constitution. It has developed and deployed offensive weapons far beyond the needs for exclusive defense, and pursued remilitarization without ever a reckoning with its past atrocities. These are the real threat to regional peace and stability. We urge the Japanese side to take a long hard look in the mirror, stop its misleading smearing campaigns, and never repeat the doomed mistake of militarism."
FILE: Tokyo, Japan - Nov 20, 2025 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
6. Various of National Diet building
FILE: Tokyo, Japan - Nov 20, 2025 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
7. Various of Japanese prime minister's office, traffic, security guards
FILE: Tokyo, Japan - Nov 14, 2025 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
8. Japanese prime minister's office
When the Japanese side hypes up China's national defense spending, it is just to find excuses for its own military expansion, said Chinese Defense Ministry spokesman Jiang Bin at a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday.
Jiang made the remarks in response to a media query after Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary said that China is increasing its defense expenditure with a high growth rate and is developing its military substantially and rapidly without transparency.
He stressed that China's national defense spending is open, transparent, and beyond reproach.
"We have released the information regarding the specifics of China's 2026 defense budget, making public its size, composition, and allocation and leaving no room for doubt. China's defense spending accounts for less than 1.5 percent of its GDP, which is significantly lower than that of major military powers like the U.S., and is also below the global average and the NATO benchmark of over 2 percent of GDP. The increase in our defense budget is characterized by a reasonable, moderate, and restrained growth, which is solely meant to meet the needs of safeguarding China's sovereignty, security, and development interests, and of maintaining world peace and stability. The stronger the Chinese military is, the more secure the world would be," said the spokesman.
"When relevant Japanese politicians hype up China's defense budget and the so-called China threat, it is nothing more than a trick of 'a thief-crying-stop-thief' so as to find excuses for Japan's hidden ambition of military expansion. Due to its history of launching wars of aggression, Japan should be completely disarmed and shall not maintain industries that would enable it to re-arm for war, in accordance with such legally-binding international instruments as the Cairo Declaration, the Potsdam Proclamation, and the Japanese Instrument of Surrender. It must be pointed out that Japan's defense budget has grown for 14 years in a row and increased over 60 percent in the past five years, reaching 2 percent of its GDP. The country's per capita military spending is more than three times that of China. The Japanese side is making drastic efforts to break away from the constraints of its pacifist constitution. It has developed and deployed offensive weapons far beyond the needs for exclusive defense, and pursued remilitarization without ever a reckoning with its past atrocities. These are the real threat to regional peace and stability. We urge the Japanese side to take a long hard look in the mirror, stop its misleading smearing campaigns, and never repeat the doomed mistake of militarism," Jiang said.
ID : 8470825
Published : 2026-03-18 16:53
Last Modified : 2026-03-19 16:29:37
Source : China Central Television (CCTV)
Restrictions : No access Chinese mainland
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