Japan on Monday voiced disquiet over China's double-digit boost to its military budget, as newspapers expressed scepticism over whether Beijing was telling the truth.
Tokyo's top government spokesman urged China's leaders to greater transparency on military issues and pledged Japan would be closely watching what happened across the water.
"We are concerned about the double-digit increase in this year's Chinese defence budget and will pay attention to future developments," Chief Cabinet Secretary Osamu Fujimura told a news conference in Tokyo.
"Some details of China's defence budget are still opaque," Fujimura said. "Our country will continue asking China to boost transparency through an exchange of dialogue in the field of security."
Fujimura was speaking as Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao urged his military to boost its capacity to win "local wars" amid a ramping up of tensions with neighbours -- including Japan -- over a series of territorial disputes.
