New national security law taking Chinese military further afield: Official

The new National Security Law has provided legal basis for the military to go further afield and better safeguard world peace and the country's overseas interests, a military official said Wednesday.

According to the law, which was adopted by the top legislature on July 3, the military can get involved in international military security cooperation, including U.N. peacekeeping operations, relief and rescue, at sea and other missions, to protect China's overseas interests.

This is the first time that such provisions have been included in Chinese law, an unidentified official with the legislative affairs bureau of the Central Military Commission said in an interview with the PLA Daily.

"The clause is not only based on our military operations, but also serves as legal ground for troops involvement in overseas missions," the official said.

"It gives a legal grounding for the army to effectively deal with multiple security threats and fulfil diversified military tasks," the official added.

In addition to military security, the new law covers a wide spectrum of areas ranging from finance to culture; outer space activities and assets; those at ocean depths and in polar regions; as well as cyberspace sovereignty. Endi