By ROBERT SAIGET, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
BEIJING - Chinese President Hu Jintao on Dec. 6 urged the People's Liberation Army Navy to prepare for military combat, amid growing regional tensions over maritime disputes and a U.S. campaign to assert itself as a Pacific power.
The PLA Navy should "accelerate its transformation and modernization in a sturdy way, and make extended preparations for military combat in order to make greater contributions to safeguard national security," he said.
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