Beijing  - China announced another 15-per-cent hike in its annual military budget on Wednesday, amid international concern following similar large increases in recent years.

The draft defence budget for 2009 is set at 480.686 billion yuan (70.2 billion dollars), a rise of 62.482 billion yuan, or 14.9 per cent, from last year, a spokesman for China's nominal parliament told reporters.

The "modest" rise in military spending is needed to pay for military modernization and improve conditions for troops, said Li Zhaoxing, the spokesman for the annual session of the National People's Congress (NPC).

"China's limited military force is mainly for safeguarding our sovereignty and will not pose a threat to any country," Li said.

The military budget accounts for 6.3 per cent of China's total planned expenditure this year, a small decrease from previous years, he said.

Last year's military expenditure accounted for 1.4 per cent of China's gross domestic product, making it "fairly low" compared with other major nations, Li said.

China announced a 17.6-per-cent rise in its annual military budget last year, following several previous years of double-digit growth.

The 3,000-member NPC is scheduled to discuss and approve the national budget during its nine-day annual session, which begins on Thursday.

Many Western critics bemoan a lack of transparency from China and claim its real military spending is much higher than its budget figure.

Some US analysts estimate China's actual military spending at up to three times the budget figure. (dpa)