China's army newspaper calls for no fear

BEIJING - The People's Liberation Army (PLA) Daily, the flagship newspaper of China's armed forces, carried a commentary Monday calling on troops to fear no sacrifice in peaceful times.

The spirit of fighting must be stressed in the army and soldiers should always maintain great revolutionary enthusiasm and high morale in peaceful times, the article said. It added without courage and uprightness troops are doomed to defeat in battle.

It was the spirit of fearing no sacrifice that enabled the PLA to win battles against enemies and obtain the precious peaceful life for its people, but troops are prone to slack off and lose momentum in times of peace, it said.

The rapid development of science and technology and ensuing military reform have sparked changes in the nature of war, as well as debates on whether courage and uprightness are still indispensable in modern warfare, the commentary said.

"Some believe that in the age of information war, the mighty aircraft and missiles will crush even the most extraordinary fighting spirit," it said.

The fighting capacity has its roots in courage and uprightness which are embodied in the readiness to embrace challenge and sacrifice, the commentary argued.

However, fostering courage and uprightness does not run counter to caring for soldiers and fearing no sacrifice does not mean being reckless, the article said.

"The PLA has always aligned gallantry with tactics, courage with confidence, and readiness with prudence," it added. "In future battles, it is still imperative to value soldiers' lives and minimize the price to pay for victory."