China parades naval might

BEIJING (AFP) - China paraded its warships and nuclear submarines Thursday in an unprecedented display of maritime might attended by 14 other nations to mark the 60th anniversary of its navy.
Fifty-six Chinese subs, destroyers, frigates, missile boats and planes were displayed off the eastern port city of Qingdao just weeks after tensions flared following a naval stand-off with the United States in the South China Sea.
The review — only the fourth to take place since 1949 and the first on such a large and international scale — was opened by two of China’s nuclear-powered submarines, the first time in history they have been unveiled to the public.
President Hu Jintao boarded the destroyer Shijiazhuang, after having sought to reassure the heads of foreign navy delegations that China’s maritime power posed no threat to anyone.
“Both now and in the future, no matter to what extent we develop, China will never seek hegemony,” he said, in comments reported by Xinhua.
State television showed Hu standing on the deck of the Shijiazhuang saluting and calling out to the ships that passed before him. But Jean-Pierre Cabestan, professor of political science at Hong Kong Baptist University, described the event as “a show of force, of power”.
“It’s a public relations display with a double message — China as an integrator, showing it is keeping with the rules of the international game, but also showing it is now in the big power arena,” he said.
Ships from 14 countries, including the United States, Russia and France, took part in the fleet review, which Chinese officials have said is aimed at promoting understanding about China’s military development.
“Suspicions about China being a ‘threat’ to world security are mostly because of... lack of understanding about China,” Ding Yiping, deputy commander of the navy, told the official Xinhua news agency this week.
China has always stressed its military build-up, watched with a wary eye by the United States — which accuses the Chinese of a lack of transparency — does not pose a threat to other countries.