An official with China's Defence Ministry on Wednesday said that an upcoming military exercise would show openness of the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

The exercise to be performed by the PLA in the northern Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region on Thursday has invited more than 110 military delegates and observers from 36 countries.

"In the exercise, the number of foreign observers we have invited is the largest in history," said Geng Yansheng, an officer with the Defence Ministry. "We are pushing forward PLA's openness and transparency."

The war game, code-named "Warrior 2008," will showcase how China's mechanized troops enhance their combating capacity under simulated conditions of information warfare.

According to Geng, both sides of the war game would be allowed to freely deploy their defence and offence without being given prepared plans to show the troop's abilities as much as they could.

"The exercise will send a message to the world that China will continue its military openness and transparency," said Geng, adding that PLA will also enhance exchange and cooperation with foreign militaries.

The exercise will be the sixth large-scale maneuvre of the PLA which is open to foreign military officers since 2003.

The ministry invited the foreign army delegations and observers "with aims to increase military exchange between the PLA and foreign armed forces, and to strengthen mutual trust and understanding," according to a briefing of the ministry.

More than 5,200 soldiers and officers from the Beijing Military Area Command, the Jinan Military Area Command and the air force will participate in the one-month war game at the Zhurihe training base in Inner Mongolia since Aug. 26.

So far the "Red Army" and the "Blue Army" have finished long-distance maneuvers and strategy planning, and are conducting combat exercise with live ammunition, according to the ministry.

(Xinhua News Agency September 25, 2008)