Li Zhaoxing, spokesman for the Second Session of the 11th National People's Congress (NPC), answers questions from journalists during the news conference on the Second Session of the 11th NPC at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, March 4, 2009.

China's national defense budget will rise by 14.9 percent to 480.7 billion yuan in 2009, Li Zhaoxing, spokesman for the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC), told a press conference Wednesday.

According to Li, 2009 defense expenditure will increase by 62.5 billion yuan over 2008 and will account for 6.3 percent of the total national budget.

The increased military expenditure will be used to raise salaries and benefits for China's servicemen and women, boost the use of information technology in the armed forces, capacity upgrade projects, and will also cover the expenses of armed forces aid activities in the areas hit by the May 12 earthquake, Li said.

Li said that, taking population and the size of its territory into consideration, China's military spending is still relatively low compared to western countries such as the United States, Britain and France.

Li also said that "there is no such thing as 'hidden military' expenditure in China".

(China.org.cn by Yan Pei, March 4, 2009)