But, it must also care for an aging, graying and not particularly well-trained People's Liberation Army. It has to ensure basic benefits for this force. That means additional defense budget outlays often go to better pay, better housing and better retirement benefits. China is not the former Soviet Union. First of all, its military is not as strong as the former Soviet Union's once was.
China has little or no force projection capability.
This is not going to change overnight. Second, China's disputes with its neighbors over territory generally have been made with reference to history rather than as claims to empire. China has not sought the same kind of external empire as the former Soviet Union did with eastern Europe. China has reached outward to attract investment, promote exports and point economic development in the direction of capital markets. Foreign direct investment in China over the last five years has equaled foreign direct investment in Japan over the past 50 years.