It has almost become a ritual. Every year in early June, a Chinese general sits down on a stage at the Shangri-La Hotel in Singapore and tells a ballroom packed with defence ministers and military brass from all over the world that China aspires to peace and will not pose a threat to anyone. When he has finished speaking, one member of the audience after another challenges Beijing’s sincerity.
It was no different yesterday, when Qi Jianguo, deputy chief of general staff of the People’s Liberation Army, addressed the Shangri-La Dialogue, an annual high-level defence conference. “China will always follow the road of peaceful development, and remain dedicated to promoting development that is peaceful, open, co-operative and win-win,” the lieutenant-general said, in remarks closely echoing those of his predecessors.
His audience remained unconvinced. “The remarks were completely empty,” said Arthur Ding, an expert on Chinese security issues at National Chengchi University in Taiwan.