SINGAPORE — The recent anti-Chinese protests in Tibet and several surrounding provinces in China have been watched with concern by governments in nearby South and Southeast Asia, especially India. But unlike faraway Europe and the United States, their priority in Tibet is stability, not human rights.
China's rapid rise as an economic giant is having mainly beneficial effects in South and Southeast Asia. Trade, investment and tourism with China has mushroomed, promoting growth in the region while Western demand slows due to the U.S. economic slump and the credit crisis.
However, sustained growth enables China to modernize its armed forces as well as it economy. Earlier this month, Beijing announced plans to raise military spending by nearly 18 percent this year, to $59 billion, marking the 20th consecutive year that China's defense budget has increased by double digits. India, in particular, does not want to see Beijing given an internal security pretext to move more Chinese forces into Tibet, which was occupied by China in 1960.
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