The 'bumper' 40 per cent increase followed a number of sweeping reforms intended to transform the 'bloated People’s Liberation Army (PLA), into a more modern, nimble fighting force'.
A letter from Xi to Schultz reported Friday by the official Xinhua News Agency was a rare direct communication from China's paramount leader to a foreign business figure.
In his latest order to the military, Jinping has asked the Chinese military to train its officers and soldiers in realistic combat scenarios and conduct more emergency-response drills
The BRICS summit is taking place at a time two of the bloc's members, India and China, are locked in a bitter border standoff in eastern Ladakh for over six months