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Letters

Looking at all the military hardware on display for the October 1 celebration of the 70th anniversary of the People’s Republic of China, and reflecting on the Chinese occupation of the South China Sea and its Belt and Road Initiative, one can’t get away from the incongruity of it all, with respect to the challenges facing China today.
Whom or what is China up against militarily and to what end? Are its neighbours such a huge threat? “Belt and road” to where? To extend China’s influence?
Billions of renminbi have been spent on militarising the South China Sea, and many millions more are being spent on its maintenance. Meanwhile, hypersonic weaponry is being developed. What for? If the US is the target, is China going to destroy what is arguably its biggest customer?
Meanwhile, the trade war goes on. The belt and road drifts aimlessly and has come in for criticism as “China’s big giveaway”. China rages against any foreign power, corporation, or individual by whom it feels slighted today, yesterday, last year or in my grandpa’s time.
Sure, China can flatten Hong Kong in a day – it could have done so in 1967 too – and China can probably destroy Taiwan from a distance. Meanwhile, Tibet and Xinjiang are being remade in the President Xi Jinping’s preconceived mould of Chineseness.
Why does China hew to such harsh and angry narratives to promote itself and its ideology? Here’s an idea: I have been in the insurance business in Hong Kong for going on 50 years, and I can’t ever remember selling a policy by whacking my potential client over the head to convince them to buy.
Stuart McCarthy, Causeway Bay
With cutting-edge weapons, China takes a great leap – backwards
So China now has the longest-range intercontinental ballistic missile, capable of delivering a nuclear bomb to any city on the planet. This is certainly a great leap backwards by an increasingly arrogant state.
Rod Matthews, Melbourne


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China’s military posturing during its National Day parade won’t win it any friends

Troops take part in a military parade on China’s National Day on October 1. The parade featured some of the People’s Liberation Army’s most sophisticated arsenal – a show of power that would not go down well with the many already rankled by Beijing’s growing assertiveness on the global stage. Photo: Xinhua

China at 70 must take on its greatest challenge yet – political reform and opening up

Illustration: Craig Stephens

FILE - In this Oct. 1, 1949, file photo, Mao Zedong stands in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, declaring a New China. (AP Photo, File)

China’s latest display of military might suggests its ‘nuclear triad’ is complete

The parade featured mobile DF-41 ballistic missiles that can strike any target in the United States. Photo: Reuters

China's H-6 bomber jets fly in formation past the sun during a parade to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of Communist China in Beijing, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. China's Communist Party is celebrating its 70th anniversary in power with a parade showcasing its economic development and newest weapons. The event marks the anniversary of the Oct. 1, 1949, announcement of the founding of the People's Republic of China by then-leader Mao Zedong. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

(191001) -- BEIJING, Oct. 1, 2019 (Xinhua) -- A formation of the JL-2 missiles takes part in a military parade during the celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China (PRC) in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 1, 2019. (Xinhua/Wang Kai)

Chinese military vehicles carrying DF-17 ballistic missiles roll during a parade to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the founding of Communist China in Beijing, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. Trucks carrying weapons including a nuclear-armed missile designed to evade U.S. defenses rumbled through Beijing as the Communist Party celebrated its 70th anniversary in power with a parade Tuesday that showcased China's ambition as a rising global force. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

Public opinion on China turns negative in Western Europe and Asia-Pacific, survey finds

More people in Bulgaria, Poland and Lithuania held positive views of China rather than negative, according to the survey. Photo: AP

Balloons are released during the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China in Beijing on Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2019. (AP Photo/Ng Han Guan)