The Chinese People's Liberation Army celebrated the 97th anniversary of its founding on Thursday.

Chinese troops have fought their way through battles and wars and made huge sacrifices to achieve one brilliant victory after another. They have made immense contributions to realizing China's national independence and people's liberation, safeguarding State sovereignty, security and development interests, supporting the country's economic and social construction and protecting people's lives.

Keeping pace with the development of the country, China's military has become more modern, with ever-enhanced deterrence and defense capabilities.

The PLA has always upheld the defensive military strategy, pursuing peace, development, cooperation and win-win results. From the very first day when it possessed nuclear weapons, China solemnly announced that it will not be the first to use nuclear weapons at any time and under any circumstances, and unconditionally not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapon states or nuclear-weapon-free zones.

China and its military have always stood for the peaceful settlement of international disputes, insisted on resolving conflicts and problems with relevant countries through dialogue, negotiation and consultation on an equal footing, and opposed the willful use or threat of force. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Chinese military has never initiated a war or occupied an inch of land belonging to other countries.

The Chinese military has also always been a staunch force in safeguarding world peace. It has taken an active part in international military cooperation and provided public goods for the international community and regional security.

China is the largest contributor of peacekeepers among the permanent members of the UN Security Council. Its navy has sent task forces to the Gulf of Aden and the waters off the coast of Somalia on escort missions for ships passing there. The Chinese armed forces have undertaken many international responsibilities and obligations within their capacity and made more contributions to safeguarding world peace and promoting common development.