"Of course, for Taiwan's security we cannot place our hopes only on improved relations with China," Ma said in a National Day address in central Taipei.

"Therefore, it is our necessary and unalterable policy to develop an independent defensive capability and to continue to buy from abroad defensive weapons that we cannot produce ourselves."

Late last month, Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao was quoted by Taipei-based media as suggesting that mainland missiles targeting Taiwan could one day be removed. Ma again welcomed this on Sunday.

"The mainland authorities recently made a statement on withdrawing the missiles. We think that's positive for ties between Taiwan and China, and we hope it will be realised at an early date," Ma said.

Taiwanese experts estimate that the Chinese military has more than 1,600 missiles aimed at the island.

The number has been growing steadily in recent years, in a stark reminder that China has never given up the option of using force to bring about reunification.

The United States in January approved a 6.4-billion-dollar package including helicopters, anti-missile defences and mine-sweepers for Taiwan, which is still pressing for US F-16 fighter-jets.

China reacted furiously to the arms deal and is only now resuming suspended military exchanges with the United States.

Ma was elected in 2008 on a promise to improve Taiwan's economy, mainly by stepping up exchanges with China.

Under his leadership, ties between Taiwan and China have warmed rapidly and are now at their friendliest since 1949, when the two sides split at the end of a civil war.

"We will continue to expand economic, cultural and social exchanges and build up mutual trust," Ma said.

He spoke on the 99th anniversary of the Republic of China, which was founded on the mainland and ruled there until defeated by the communists. It remains the official name of Taiwan.

"The Republic of China is a sovereign, independent nation," Ma said in his speech, addressing concerns among many of the island's 23 million people that closer ties with China could endanger the island's de facto independence.

earlier related report
Vietnam holds largest military display in years
Hanoi (AFP) Oct 10, 2010 - Thousands of goose-stepping soldiers marched past the tomb of Vietnam's founding president Ho Chi Minh on Sunday for the country's largest military display in years.

The parade, part of a ceremony for the city of Hanoi's millennium celebrations, is a display of national pride that also sends a subtle message to Vietnam's giant neighbour China with the two sides in dispute over territory in the South China Sea, an analyst said.

A cross-section of society including workers, youth, ethnic and religious groups joined the parade, which officials said involved almost 40,000 people.

"A lot of blood flowed... to have a Hanoi as we have today," President Nguyen Minh Triet told the gathering.

"The Vietnamese people love peace... but do not submit to brute force and violence."

The display began under overcast skies when 10 Russian-made military helicopters flew past carrying the national flag and the communist hammer-and-sickle banner.

Communist Party leaders waved from their perch atop Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum as white-gloved troops and police in an array of green, blue, white and brown uniforms followed in tightly formed blocks, their legs kicking high.

The troops included fatigue-clad special forces members with assault rifles, and ethnic-minority militia women in traditional dress with rifles slung over their shoulders.

There were no heavy weapons and the military component occupied only a part of the 90-minute programme which included lion dances and depictions of Vietnamese history.

But the parade sends a message that "Vietnam is not a place that you want to attack", said Carl Thayer, a Vietnam specialist at The University of New South Wales in Australia.

Much of Vietnam's military hardware is antiquated but it is seeking to upgrade its forces as the sovereignty dispute simmers with China.

In December, Vietnam and Russia signed a major arms deal reported to involve the purchase of six submarines.

That agreement was followed in July by Russia's announcement that it would sell 20 Sukhoi SU-30MK2 fighter planes to Vietnam.

Hanoi last week demanded the release of a vessel and its crew seized by China one month ago while fishing in the Paracels archipelago.

The two sides have conflicting claims to sovereignty over the Paracels and Spratlys, two potentially resource-rich archipelagos in the South China Sea.

Although the dispute is a long-running one, China's increasingly assertive presence in the South China Sea has sparked concern not only in Vietnam but neighbouring nations as well as the United States.

China was enraged when Japan last month arrested a Chinese trawler captain at another disputed island group in the East China Sea. Japanese prosecutors released the captain after weeks of intense pressure from Beijing.

Communist Vietnam routinely celebrates major anniversaries with pomp and ceremony as a way for the ruling party to affirm its legitimacy, but also to help shape national identity and pride, said Thayer.

For Nguyen Thi Binh, deputy head of a high school, the parade showed "our military power. I feel very moved".

Thousands crowded city streets hoping to catch a glimpse of the procession and many, such as Nguyen Van Tuan, 42, had come from the countryside.

"It was a 1,000-year opportunity to watch," said Tuan.

Vietnam has a proud military tradition dating back more than 1,000 years to the defeat of Chinese occupiers. More recently, communist forces defeated French colonialists in 1954 and then beat American troops to reunify the country in 1975.

"The military is popular. It's a people's army," Thayer said.

King Ly Thai To moved the capital of Vietnam to Hanoi in 1010 and called it Thang Long, or "soaring dragon", symbolising the desire for independence after a millennium of Chinese domination.

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