Wanton use of force will not make America great again: defense spokesperson

BEIJING -- A Chinese defense spokesperson on Wednesday said that "wanton use of force will not make America great again" in response to reports that the US defense budget for fiscal year 2026 will reach a record $1 trillion.

Zhang Xiaogang, a spokesperson for China's Ministry of National Defense, said such act would only inflict painful disasters upon the people of the United States and the rest of the world.

The sky-high defense budget exposed once again the bellicose nature of the US side and its belief in "might makes right," he said.

Zhang noted that the US government is in heavy debt, yet it keeps pouring ill-gotten wealth exploited from other countries into manufacturing weapons.

He urged the US side to break away from the obsession with hegemony at an early date and recognize that wanton use of force will not make America great again.