President Hu Jintao on Thursday urged the Chinese army to carry forward the courageous spirit it had shown in the earthquake relief work earlier this year to better serve the people.

Hu, also the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee general secretary and Central Military Commission chairman, made the remark here while meeting soldiers and officers who were recognized for their outstanding contributions to the disaster relief work.

On Wednesday, China held a ceremony to honor outstanding organizations and individuals for their contributions to the rescue and relief work after a catastrophic earthquake hit the southwestern Sichuan and some neighboring provinces on May 12, leaving more than 87,000 dead or missing.

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) troops and armed police were among the first to provide rescue and relief following the quake. In total, 146,000 troops, armed police, reservists and police were mobilized for the rescue and relief.

Hu spoke highly of the army's key role in the arduous work. He said the PLA should draw from the experience to strengthen its capabilities against various threats to the nation's security.

Guo Boxiong, CPC Central Military Commission vice chairman, described the army's involvement in the relief as "a large-scale, non-war military action," which tested and tempered the PLA's security-safeguarding abilities.

He said strong and unified leadership, high morale and well-planned logistic support in the army were vital to the success of the quake relief.

(Xinhua News Agency October 10, 2008)