The World - News from June 11, 1985
Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping formally announced plans to cut the country’s 4-million-strong standing army, one of the world’s largest, by 1 million men over the next two years, the New China News Agency said. Deng, chairman of the powerful Communist Party Central Military Commission, said the demobilization plan, first disclosed in April, is “a major strategic decision.” He added, “Economic construction is our main aim and everything must be subordinated to it.” Western military experts said the cuts will include 80,000 officers and thousands of semi-retired or inactive troops.
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