“War is not far from us. Regional situations around China are complex and unstable, and dangers are hiding under the peace. China cannot afford a military failure, so we must be fully aware of potential crisis and be prepared for battle at all times. When the country is on the brink of becoming a great military power, it’s also stepping into a period with high risks to national security,” the official People’s Liberation Army (PLA) newspaper wrote according to China’s Global Times.

The article first headlined on Tuesday in the PLA daily: “A soldier without desire for war-preparedness is not a good soldier.” The newspaper warned that Chinese soldiers are not ready for combat because many refuse to believe war is imminent.

Military experts agree that the threat of a conflict around China has increased in recent years.

“In regions like the Korea Peninsula, China-India border area and the Taiwan Straits, the PLA needs to be prepared for all possibilities. Our overseas interests in regions like Africa and the Middle East are also under threat due to local instability,” said Xu Guangyu, a retired major general and senior adviser of the China Arms Control and Disarmament Association according to the Global Times.

Last week, President Xi Jinping kicked off the new year with a rare speech to the military urging soldiers to be ready for war and “don’t fear death.”

China’s soldiers should “neither fear hardship nor death,” Xi told thousands of troops during an inspection visit last Wednesday to the People’s Liberation Army’s (PLA) Central Theater Command in northern Hebei province, according to the official Xinhua news agency.

The People’s Liberation Army (PLA) has been conducting war drills at home and abroad involving most of its military branches.

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