China’s $249 Billion 2025 Military Budget: Modernization, Tensions, and Comparisons

On Wednesday, March 5, 2025, China announced a 7.2% increase in its 2025 national defense budget, bringing total military spending to $249 billion.
The Chinese PLA Navy dual carrier armada, the Liaoning and Shandong aircraft carriers. Image via the People's Liberation Army.

On Wednesday, China announced a 7.2% increase in its 2025 national defense and military budget, bringing total military spending to $249 billion.

This marks the 10th consecutive year of single-digit growth in defense expenditure, a pattern Beijing maintains is measured and defensive. However, in a world witnessing a surge in military budgets due to rising geopolitical tensions, China’s continued modernization is under heightened scrutiny.

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by Edwin Shri Bimo

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