China, whose military buildup alarms the Pentagon, marked Army Day on Monday with a pledge never to engage in expansionism but warned self-ruled Taiwan against formally declaring statehood.
The U.S. Department of Defense said in a report in July it was concerned about China's military modernization and economic might and feared that a changing balance of power in Asia could threaten democratic Taiwan, which Beijing claims as its own.
Making no reference to the report, General Cao Gangchuan, the defense minister, insisted that China was a peace-loving nation but warned Taiwan it would never be allowed to formally secede, said the People's Daily, the Communist Party mouthpiece.
"China will resolutely pursue an independent foreign policy of peace and a defensive national defense policy," Cao told a gathering at the Great Hall of the People on Sunday, the eve of the 78th founding anniversary of the People's Liberation Army.
"We will never engage in expansionism or seek hegemony and will resolutely walk the path of peace and development," said Cao, who is a vice-chairman of the decision-making Central Military Commission, which commands the PLA.
Beijing has claimed sovereignty over Taiwan since their split at the end of China's civil war in 1949. It has vowed to attack the island if it formally declares independence.
Cao toed the new line set by Communist Party and military chief Hu Jintao to show "the utmost sincerity and exert the greatest effort to seek peaceful unification" with Taiwan.
"(But) we will never allow 'Taiwan independence' splittist forces to cut off Taiwan from the motherland under any name or in any form," Cao said.
The PLA menaced Taiwan with war games and missile tests in 1995-96 ahead of the island's first presidential elections.
Political tensions continued to simmer until a mainland visit in April this year by the chairman of the Nationalist Kuomintang, the party which once ruled all of China but fled in 1949.
China, a nuclear power, has far more jet fighters, warships and submarines than Taiwan. But Western expert say Taiwan, armed to the teeth with U.S. and French jet fighters and frigates, could give China a bloody nose in any conventional conflict.
The United States has pledged to help Taiwan defend itself against any Chinese invasion.
LOYALTIES SPLIT
Hu, 62, took formal control of the military from Jiang Zemin, 78, last September, completing China's first smooth generational leadership change since the Communists took power.
But military sources say Hu, who had earlier replaced Jiang as Communist Party chief and state president, has yet to fully consolidate power in the 2.5-million-strong PLA.
Jiang promoted 79 men to full general rank during his 15 years in power, and clearly still wields some influence. Sources say PLA loyalties are split between Hu and Jiang.
In a sign of Jiang's residual influence, Cao paid tribute to Jiang's "Three Represents" political doctrine, which cracked open the party's doors to wealthy entrepreneurs.
Cao also pledged to carry out Jiang's precepts on national defense building, before stressing that the PLA would also seriously implement Hu's directives.
In Communist protocol, the names of leaders are mentioned in order of importance.
In a front-page editorial, the Liberation Army Daily urged the PLA on Monday to "obey and follow the party at all times and under any circumstances."
Hostile forces were out to "Westernise" and "divide" China and change the nature of the PLA by calling for depoliticisation, the editorial said without elaborating.