China and India spur defense spending in Asia Pacific

Region’s military expenditure rises from $220 billion in 2008 to $239 billion in 2009SINGAPORE: Increased military spending by China and India is forcing other Asia-Pacific countries to modernize their armed forces despite the severe impact of the global financial crisis, experts say.Data from defense research firm Jane's Information Group estimates total military spending in the region rising year-on-year - from about 220 billion dollars in 2008 to 239 billion dollars this year and higher still in 2010. Those figures include external defense and homeland security and cover a region stretching from Central Asia to Australia."India and China are forcing the countries to think very hard strategically about their defense capabilities," Jon Grevatt, a regional defense specialist with Jane's, told AFP from Bangkok. He said that although money is tight across the region, "the pressure of not spending on defense is very high due to the considerable military influence that China and India are assuming in this part of the world." Even countries not bordering China and India are upgrading their arsenals.Singapore, despite suffering its worst-ever economic slowdown, will increase its defense spending by an annual 6.0 percent to 7.53 billion dollars in the new fiscal year starting April, the government says. The city-state's immediate neighbors, Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand are all poised to follow suit, Grevatt said. "What you can see in Southeast Asia is something like a mini arms race with capabilities such as submarines and armored vehicles being acquired," Grevatt added.Richard Bitzinger, a senior fellow with the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, said spending across Asia "reflects long-term goals and ambitions that they have that are not going to be affected by short-term concerns in the economy." Research by Jane's confirms other figures showing China is now the number one military spender in the region, surpassing Japan for the first time in 2008, when Beijing allocated almost 59 billion dollars for its defense needs.China and India have both amassed wealth after years of rapid economic growth. "They want to use that wealth to develop and procure military capability so that they are perceived as a country that can defend their assets," said Jane's Grevatt. Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao said the military needed modernization "across the board" as a proposed 15.3 percent rise in defence spending to 69 billion dollars for 2009 was unveiled by Beijing."China has not really made any real attempt to articulate these increases," said Alan Dupont, from the Centre for International Security Studies, at the University of Sydney. He said Beijing "should not be criticized for doing exactly what Washington has done, which is to modernize its forces and increase its spending on defence." India is also splashing out despite the global economic slowdown, with its defense budget increasing by 24 percent to 29.4 billion dollars for the fiscal year beginning April 1, the steepest rise since independence in 1947.The bulk of that money will go towards modernizing its military - the world's fourth largest. The country's 1.2-million-strong army is shopping for helicopters, artillery, armour and infantry gear while its air force is expected to hand out a 126-aircraft contract worth almost 12 billion dollars. "We think the Mumbai attacks (in November 2008) sounded alarm bells across Asia about maritime security vulnerabilities," said Bob Nugent, vice-president for advisory services with US-based AMI International, a naval research agency."The immediate reaction in India has been to reorganize the military and related structures that provide maritime security," he said. Source: AFP