The term “power projection” is a technical term which is used in the military world, but in the past, China said the term was not used in the Western way. So, now, is there a difference between China ten years ago and China today in using “power projection”. Is that argument fair? Robert Lawrence Kuhn discussed this question with Xu Hui, Commandant of the International College of Defense Studies, National Defense University.

“Generally speaking, even today by stressing our defensive strategy, China’s military is an inward-looking military. In the past, we have very few contacts with foreign countries, but with the development and modernization of the Chinese military, we have more chances to go abroad. And to some extent, we have to go abroad. The fact is that our interest is now going to every corner of the globe and Chinese people go to work in every corner of the world. This is one aspect. And at the same time, there are more and more needs from other countries: China could not only be an economic power and it must do more in international security, either for the training of other countries’ militaries, or to help them to modernize their military, and to work together with them to protect our common interest. So, for that, we have to have the capabilities.”