In recent days, we constantly hear opinions such as "China always incites nationalistic sentiments and believes using the military is an easy tool to solve problems." Other scholars argue that "The conflict between countries should be dealt with in a civilized manner." These are misjudgments about international relations and China's security situation.

It is widely known that the Chinese military shoulders the responsibility of safeguarding the country's sovereignty and territory. In other words, the military has the very right to speak about national defense and security.

For the past 65 years since the founding of the PRC, the military has kept a low profile and never interfered in the affairs of other governmental organizations.

Some scholars believe the army should behave in a civilized manner and not mention the word "war." However, if the military does not bear "war" in mind, national security will not be guaranteed.

China is a major power that hasn't accomplished complete national unification. The Chinese military is there to safeguard the integrity of the country's sovereignty and territory and maintain national interests.

The world pattern has been shifting rapidly. China is facing serious security and development problems. The intertwined traditional security threats and non-traditional security threats add severity and complexity to China's situation.

As the US pushes forward its "pivot to Asia" strategy and incites conflicts between China and its neighboring countries, China's maritime security environment becomes more complicated.

The Chinese military hasn't fought a war for more than 30 years and has no battlefield experience in this information era. A peaceful environment is particularly vital for economic development, but can brew inertness among combat forces. 

The impact of infiltration by hostile forces from within and abroad cannot be underestimated. In the face of these intentional infiltrations and attacks, we may be defeated once the military slacks off.

Facing the new situation and new tasks, the military cannot relax its mind, but should think deeply about how it can provide security to realize the country's rejuvenation.

It should also think about how to maintain national security while bringing benefits to national development.

Moreover, the military can think about how to make China play a bigger role in maintaining the world's peaceful development, by raising its strength of national defense.

The author is a senior research fellow at the Hainan Institute for Maritime Security and Cooperation Studies. opinion@globaltimes.com.cn