China warns military members against online dating, gambling

BEIJING — 

In an antithetic warning, China's navy told young officers and unit that they could get ensnared by online dating scams and virtual gambling if they fto down their guard, exposing themselves to information risks and undermining the military.

Addressing those calved from 1990 who are "becoming the halfway of the army," the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy said successful a societal media station that young soldiers should debar revealing their subject individuality online arsenic they could beryllium "extremely easy" targets of criminals.

The governmental and confidential quality of the subject assemblage dictates that the subject unit individuality indispensable not beryllium exposed online, it said.

"Distinguish cautiously and support immoderate region erstwhile making friends online," a enactment successful the station advised, and "never suffer show of your principles and marque random friends with netizens."

The navy besides cautioned against virtual gambling, which is amerciable successful China, likening gambling addiction to being "possessed by a demon" and informing against schemes that could pb to a "fall into an endless abyss" of debt.

China's subject projects an representation of power, from launching drills astir democratically governed Taiwan to deploying patrols successful the South China Sea. But President Xi Jinping, besides the military's commander-in-chief, has often warned that the equipped forces look "deep-seated" problems from within, including corruption and a deficiency of discipline.

Young soldiers are not the lone demographic singled out. Xi has besides stressed governmental loyalty from elder subject personnel.

At a subject league successful June, Xi emphasized upholding the Chinese Communist Party's "absolute leadership" implicit the PLA and that the equipped forces indispensable ever "uphold their halfway values, support purity, and strictly adhere to discipline."

Xi attributed the basal origin of problems to the deficiency of ideals and beliefs, calling connected the equipped forces peculiarly elder cadres, to "introspect, prosecute successful soul-searching reflections, and marque earnest rectifications," according to authoritative quality bureau Xinhua.