BEIJING, Nov 4 — A top Chinese military commander has declared publicly for the first time China’s plans to put weapons in space and to put more emphasis on the air force’s offensive capabilities.

This signals a turning point in China’s military posture as the Chinese force becomes increasingly self-confident, analysts said.

General Xu Qiliang, the head of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force, told the PLA Daily three days ago that the air force will extend its reach “from the sky to space, from defence of Chinese territory to attack (of threats) as well”.

It has decided to change its approach as “China’s national interests are expanding and the country has entered the age of space”, said the air force’s commander-in-chief.

Breaking the official line which touts peaceful use of outer space, Xu, 59, asserted that it was imperative to build up space capabilities as whoever controls deep space would become a dominant power.

“The competition between military forces is moving towards outer space... this is a historical inevitability and a development that cannot be turned back,”he said.

“There is no border in the sky and space. Only power can protect peace,” he said, noting that superiority in space can give a nation control over war zones both on land and at sea.

“We will improve the overall capability to strike a long-distance target with high precision, fight electronic or Internet warfare with back-up from space,” he added.

While China has already been pursuing a military space programme for some time, this is the first time such a senior military leader has openly announced it, noted Assistant Professor Li Mingjiang of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanyang Technological University.

“In the past, leaders had always said that China will not make any move or take the lead in weaponising space. But this is the first high-level military announcement that China has started (to do so) and will continue in future,” he said.

Xu has also indicated a shift towards a greater emphasis on active defence, which includes a proactive strategy to strike potential foreign threats.

The role of the air force needs to grow from protecting national security to keeping peace in the region and internationally, in tandem with China’s growing economic and political influence, he told the PLA Daily.

“China will become a world power by the mid-21st century and its air force must be able to counter many forms of security threats,” he said.

Li noted that this marks “a turning point in China’s military posture”.

“China and its military are increasingly self-confident and they no longer attempt to hide their intentions and their capabilities,” Li said.

Previously, China tried to avoid being associated with superpower ambitions, abiding by the late paramount leader Deng Xiaoping’s doctrine to “bide one’s time and conceal one’s intentions” when it comes to foreign policy.

Still, China’s quest now to build its air force is not a signal to the outside world that it is aggressively aiming to become a military superpower, said Professor Wang Xiangsui of the Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

Xu’s pledge to expand the air force’s offensive and defensive capabilities is timed ahead of the 60th anniversary of the Chinese air force on Nov 11, and is aimed at the domestic audience, Prof Wang said.

The Chinese air force, which will display its most advanced aircraft at the anniversary celebrations, is keen to impress the public with its progress and raise its profile so that it will have a better chance of competing against other PLA units, such as the expanding navy, for a bigger budget and more promotions, noted analysts.

“Regardless of its extent of development, the People’s Liberation Army Air Force will never pose a military threat to any country,” Xu said. — The Straits Times