Today's Links: The military budget, Australian hostages in Xi'an and smog measures

• China Hikes Military Budget 17.6% [National Post]
  "For the 19th year in a row, China has announced a double-digit increase in military spending. The move comes a day after the Pentagon released an annual assessment of China's military power that concluded the world's largest army is rapidly developing the resources and technologies it needs to put regional stability at risk."
• Aussies unhurt after China hostage drama [The Age]
  A man armed with explosives took 10 Australian tourists hostage in Xi'an, keeping one NSW woman captive for several hours before he was shot and killed by police.
• China to wage battle against bureaucracy [LA Times]
  "China usually doesn't like to air its dirty laundry. But when fighting a wily foe, in this case its own well-entrenched bureaucrats, the leadership isn't above a bit of guerrilla warfare.
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• Smog measures must not destroy Beijing life - official [Reuters]
  "Measures aimed at providing clean air for August's Olympics must not be too disruptive to the city's economy or the lives of the people, organising committee official and Beijing vice mayor Liu Jingmin said on Wednesday."
• Yao Ming Has `Good Chance' of Making Olympics, Minister Says [Bloomberg]
  Yao Ming, voted China's most popular athlete last year, has a ``good chance'' of recovering for the "Beijing Olympics after surgery ended his National Basketball Association season, according to China's sports ministry."
• Premier says China in a critical moment [Washington Post]
  China's premier on Wednesday extolled the prosperity the Communist government has brought to many Chinese, yet he sounded an alarm that inflation could derail the country's rapid emergence.

Photo from vis-a-v